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Digital Mental Health Service for Non-Treatment Seeking Young Adults

Award Number: R34MH124960
ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF MENTAL HEALTH
OPDIV: NIH
AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY
AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: SCIENTIFIC/HEALTH RESEARCH (INCLUDES SURVEYS)
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 08/04/2021
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 07/31/2025

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Digital Mental Health Service for Non-Treatment Seeking Young Adults - PROJECT SUMMARY Young adults aged 18-24 experience higher levels of mental health problems than any other adult age group. Over one quarter of all young adults living in the United States suffer from a mental health condition. Unfortunately, they are the adult age group who are least likely to seek or receive traditional face-to-face treatments such as in-person psychotherapy or pharmacotherapy. There is evidence that they are, however, interested in using digital mental health interventions (DMHIs), such as mobile and web-based apps, to support symptom self-management and skill building. While evidence suggests mental health apps can effectively reduce symptom severity, they require motivation from the user to open and use the app, which contributes to the high dropout rates. The primary method of addressing dropout has been the use of human coaching, which boosts engagement. SMS text messages arrive through the most commonly used app on the phone, and are therefore likely to be viewed. Initial work in text message interventions suggests good adherence, as effort is low, but effectiveness has been inconsistent. Messages can be perceived as off-target or impersonal, and it is difficult to convey more complex information. This project aims to address these problems by developing and piloting a personalized text messaging platform that uses machine learning to tailor SMS messages to an individual’s needs and preferences, and URL links to provide access to psychoeducational content to contextualize messages, when the length of that content exceeds the limitations of messages. This project will include a partnership with Mental Health America, the nation’s largest mental health advocacy organization. The primary goals of the project are to: (1) Develop an adaptive messaging service for young adults that personalizes messages and psychoeducational content to the needs and preferences of an individual, (2) Conduct a feasibility trial using a sequential multiple assignment randomized treatment (SMART) design, which will evalutate (a) the effectiveness of an adaptive, personalized messaging intervention in reducing engagement relative to a static version; and (b) whether human coaching results in greater symptom reduction and engagement, relative an unguided implementation. This project will, in the near term, allow us to determine the feasibility of this intervention, including whether our adaptive intervention affects treatment psychological and engagement targets, and reduces psychological distress. It will also provide preliminary information on the feasibility of a scalable model of targeted, low- intensity coaching for users who may require additional support above and beyond a fully automated intervention. This will prepare us for our longer-term goal of conducting a fully-powered randomized controlled trial of our adaptive intervention in an online community setting.


Issue Date FY	Funding FY	Legal Entity Name	Legal Entity Address	Legal Entity City	Legal Entity State	Legal Entity Zip Code	Legal Entity COUNTY	Legal Entity COUNTRY	Assistance Listing	Award Code	Budget Year	Action Date	Action Type	Action Amount

Issue Date FY: 2026 ( Subtotal = -$8 )
2026	2023	NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY	633 CLARK ST	EVANSTON	IL	60208	COOK	USA	Mental Health Research Grants	000	3	2/12/2026	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	-$8
														Subtotal = -$8

Issue Date FY: 2023 ( Subtotal = $138,492 )
2023	2023	NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY	633 CLARK ST	EVANSTON	IL	60208	COOK	USA	Mental Health Research Grants	001	3	7/26/2023	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$138,492
2023	2022	NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY	633 CLARK ST	EVANSTON	IL	60208	COOK	USA	Mental Health Research Grants	000	2	1/27/2023	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$0
														Subtotal = $138,492

Issue Date FY: 2022 ( Subtotal = $282,921 )
2022	2022	NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY	633 CLARK ST	EVANSTON	IL	60208	COOK	USA	Mental Health Research Grants	000	2	8/29/2022	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$282,921
														Subtotal = $282,921

Issue Date FY: 2021 ( Subtotal = $219,658 )
2021	2021	NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY	633 CLARK ST	EVANSTON	IL	60208	COOK	USA	Mental Health Research Grants	000	1	8/4/2021	NEW	$219,658
														Subtotal = $219,658

Grand Total All Awards = $641,063

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Digital Mental Health Service for Non-Treatment Seeking Young Adults

Award Number: R34MH124960

ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF MENTAL HEALTH

OPDIV: NIH

AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY

AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: SCIENTIFIC/HEALTH RESEARCH (INCLUDES SURVEYS)

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 08/04/2021

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 07/31/2025

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