Design, Implementation and Evaluation of an Intervention Within Video Game for Mental Health Literacy in Adolescents and Young Adults (SCOTT)

Design, Implementation and Evaluation of an Intervention Within an Online Community Game for the Development of Mental Health Literacy in Adolescents and Young Adults

Context Adolescence and early adulthood are crucial periods for the development and maintenance of habits, behaviors and beliefs favorable to health and mental well-being. These can have significant lifelong health consequences and social costs. In this age group, the Internet and smartphones are predominant. Based on these two observations, the project proposes to use the Internet, and more specifically, an online game, as a vector for public health intervention. Health literacy is recognized as a key determinant of health. It refers to the motivation and skills of individuals to access, understand, evaluate and use information to make decisions about their health. Improving the level of literacy is a major public health challenge if the population is to be in a position to take better charge of its health, particularly its mental health.

Objective To evaluate the effect of a public health intervention on the development of mental health literacy in adolescents and young adults (15-25 years) delivered within an existing online community game.

Research hypothesis Developing and delivering a (multicomponent) public health intervention in an original setting, such as the game Minecraft, to a community of adolescents and young adults will improve their mental health literacy and thus enhance the primary, secondary and tertiary prevention of mental health disorders.

Methods The project's overall methodology is based on a multidisciplinary approach. A pilot phase has already enabled us to develop the theoretical framework and constituent elements of an intervention, as well as its acceptability and feasibility.

Intervention We will conduct a pragmatic cohort multiple randomised controlled trial over 24 months. The chosen methodology will enable us to implement an intervention with different components.

The intervention will involve: collective challenges of various kinds (component A) and exchanges with influencers of different profiles (component B). The control group will be offered access to conventional sources of health information and ""placebos"" of the components described above. The theme is mental health literacy, and the intervention delivered will equip the players (capacity-building, recognizing ill-being, warning signs, resources, etc.) to ultimately enable them to react better (empowerment) and thus promote young people's mental health.

Evaluation The evaluation will follow the Medical Research Council's recommendations for the evaluation of complex interventions. It will consist of a process evaluation and an evaluation of effectiveness, all of which will be based on the use of mixed methods (observations of players receiving the intervention, analysis of chat exchanges made by players during the intervention, evaluation questionnaires and a standardized grid for collecting process indicators). The primary endpoint for the effect analysis is the mental health literacy score (global score) measured by the MHLq including four dimensions: (1) knowledge of mental health problems; (2) mistaken beliefs/stereotypes; (3) help-seeking and first-aid skills; and (4) self-help strategies.

Perspectives The results of this research project will make it possible to 1) develop new relevant interventions on various health topics, using the results obtained for the different interventions carried out within Minecraft 2) Contribute to the evidence base on the effectiveness of Internet-based interventions.

Study Overview

• Status: Not yet recruiting
• Conditions: Mental Health Literacy
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Mental health literacy intervention; Behavioral: Non mental health intervention

Detailed Description

Context Adolescence and early adulthood are crucial periods for the development and maintenance of habits, behaviors and beliefs favorable to health and mental well-being. These can have significant lifelong health consequences and social costs. In this age group, the Internet and smartphones are predominant. Based on these two observations, the project proposes to use the Internet, and more specifically, an online game, as a vector for public health intervention. Health literacy is recognized as a key determinant of health. It refers to the motivation and skills of individuals to access, understand, evaluate and use information to make decisions about their health. Improving the level of literacy is a major public health challenge if the population is to be in a position to take better charge of its health, particularly its mental health.

Objective To evaluate the effect of a public health intervention on the development of mental health literacy in adolescents and young adults (15-25 years) delivered within an existing online community game.

Research hypothesis Developing and delivering a (multicomponent) public health intervention in an original setting, such as the game Minecraft, to a community of adolescents and young adults will improve their mental health literacy and thus enhance the primary, secondary and tertiary prevention of mental health disorders.

Methods The project's overall methodology is based on a multidisciplinary approach. A pilot phase has already enabled us to develop the theoretical framework and constituent elements of an intervention, as well as its acceptability and feasibility.

Intervention We will conduct a pragmatic cohort multiple randomised controlled trial over 24 months. The chosen methodology will enable us to implement an intervention with different components.

The intervention will involve: collective challenges of various kinds (component A) and exchanges with influencers of different profiles (component B). The control group will be offered access to conventional sources of health information and ""placebos"" of the components described above. The theme is mental health literacy, and the intervention delivered will equip the players (capacity-building, recognizing ill-being, warning signs, resources, etc.) to ultimately enable them to react better (empowerment) and thus promote young people's mental health.

Evaluation The evaluation will follow the Medical Research Council's recommendations for the evaluation of complex interventions. It will consist of a process evaluation and an evaluation of effectiveness, all of which will be based on the use of mixed methods (observations of players receiving the intervention, analysis of chat exchanges made by players during the intervention, evaluation questionnaires and a standardized grid for collecting process indicators). The primary endpoint for the effect analysis is the mental health literacy score (global score) measured by the MHLq including four dimensions: (1) knowledge of mental health problems; (2) mistaken beliefs/stereotypes; (3) help-seeking and first-aid skills; and (4) self-help strategies.

Perspectives The results of this research project will make it possible to 1) develop new relevant interventions on various health topics, using the results obtained for the different interventions carried out within Minecraft 2) Contribute to the evidence base on the effectiveness of Internet-based interventions.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Estimated): 300
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: Enora LE ROUX, PhD; Phone Number: +33140032366; Email: enora.leroux@aphp.fr
• Study Contact Backup: Name: Lorraine Cousin Cabrolier, PhD; Phone Number: +33683586227; Email: lorraine.cousin@aphp.fr

Study Locations

• France
  • Paris, France, 75019
    • Hopital Robert Debre
    • Contact: Lorraine Cousin Cabrolier, PhD; Phone Number: +33683586227; Email: lorraine.cousin@aphp.fr
    • Contact: Lorraine Cousin Cabrolier, PhD

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Child; Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• French speaking Minecraft players (15 to 25 years old)

Exclusion Criteria:

-

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Prevention
• Allocation: Non-Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Mental Health Literacy intervention; Mental health literacy interventions delivered online for adolescents and young adults on, 3 modalities : webconferences, build battle, serious games	Behavioral: Mental health literacy intervention; Online interventions for adolescents and young adults on mental health literacy, 3 modalities : webconferences, build battle, serious games
Other: Other topic intervention - not related to mental health; Other topics online interventions for adolescents and young adults, 3 modalities : webconferences, build battle, serious games	Behavioral: Non mental health intervention; Online interventions for adolescents and young adults on other topics, 3 modalities : webconferences, build battle, serious games

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
MHLq : the mental health literacy questionnaire for young adults	Measure of the variation in the mental health literacy questionnaire score among young adults before and 2 months after an online intervention on mental health literacy	2 months

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Assistance Publique - Hôpitaux de Paris
• Collaborators: Institut National de la Santé Et de la Recherche Médicale, France
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Enora LE ROUX, PhD, Assistance Publique - Hôpitaux de Paris

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Estimated): June 30, 2024
• Primary Completion (Estimated): August 15, 2025
• Study Completion (Estimated): December 1, 2025

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: June 19, 2024
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: June 19, 2024
• First Posted (Actual): June 25, 2024

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): June 25, 2024
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: June 19, 2024
• Last Verified: June 1, 2024

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: mental health; literacy; video games; adolescent and young adults
• Other Study ID Numbers: A21024HS; CNAM_SCOTT_CIC1426_alberti (Other Identifier: CNAM)

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No