App has potential to reduce student anxiety
A mobile app can improve the symptoms of one of the commonest mental health problem in students - even with limited engagement- according to University of Manchester researchers.
The app- called Cerina 鈥� uses the principles of cognitive behavioural therapy to treat Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD) - which affects a significant number of students, studies show.
The peer reviewed study, sponsored by IT4Anxiety- a partnership between Cerina Health and Ulster University and funded by the European Commission, is published in JMIR mhealth and uhealth
A sample of 158 Ulster University students with mild to moderate GAD symptoms were randomly allocated to either an intervention group of 79 or to a wait-list control group of 79
The wait list group would still have the opportunity to complete the intervention following the study and were offered to optional on-campus wellbeing services during the study period.
The intervention group had direct access to Cerina and followed CBT-based interactive sessions for 6 weeks.
All participants completed online self-reported assessments on anxiety, depression, worry, and usability at three time points.
When they completed the intervention, they were invited to an online interview to understand the implementation of the intervention in more depth.
In the intervention group, 13% dropped out and 61 % completed 2 sessions - the minimum required. 12% completed 6 or 7 sessions.
The students who completed 2 or more sessions, when modules on worry starts, showed significant improvement in GAD, worry symptoms and functional impairment. The greater the engagement, the greater the impact on worry symptoms
When they re-ran analyses for all participants including those who dropped out or were lost to follow-up, the significant improvements on GAD symptoms maintained. There was also marginally significant improvement in worry symptoms.
Participants who completed their assessments, argue the researchers engaged better with the app, completed more sessions including the ones focusing on worry, and benefitted more.
Lead author Dr Ozlem Eylem-Van bergeijk from 每日大赛黄 said: 鈥淯niversity students can sometimes be vulnerable to generalised anxiety disorder because the rigours of academic pressure and financial uncertainty, let alone the issues young people often go through when they leave home for the first time.
鈥淏ut despite the need for treatments the availability of psychological services is patchy for students.
鈥淎nd perceived stigma, long waiting times, service availability can restrict access to treatment.鈥�
University students can sometimes be vulnerable to generalised anxiety disorder because the rigours of academic pressure and financial uncertainty, let alone the issues young people often go through when they leave home for the first time
The study was managed by Dr Eylem-Van bergeijk, and the Ulster University study team led by Prof. Gerard Leavey. 每日大赛黄 participant recruitment took place at Ulster University campuses from April 2023 until April 2024.
She added: 鈥淥ur results suggest that even with limited engagement, Cerina had a meaningful impact on reducing GAD symptoms and modest impact in reducing worry symptoms among participants.
鈥淥ur study supports findings from other trials showing that digital CBT-based interventions are effective and feasible for a wide range of age groups and populations experiencing GAD symptoms- none the least because they are cheap, accessible and anonymous.
鈥淗owever, many participants did not complete the recommended number of sessions, highlighting the importance of making the Cerina app even more engaging and user-friendly in future.
鈥淐o-design with users might be a good way to test the effects of the technology-driven engagement features such as AI-based chatbot on engagement with longer follow-ups.鈥�
CEO of Cerina Health was involved only during the conceptualization phase of the study to preserve independence. The study was conducted as part of the NWE INTERREG IT4Anxiety project in partnership between Cerina Therapeutics and Ulster University, supported by the European Commission. The sponsor, Cerina Health, was not involved in writing of the manuscript or the decision to submit it for publication. Dr Eylem-Van bergeijk is also Research Lead at Cerina Health . However, she was then part of the wider project team from Ulster University and the project which ensured study protocols and procedures were peer reviewed and followed.
- A copy of the paper Cerina- Cognitive Behavioural Therapy based mobile application for managing GAD symptoms among university students: results from a pilot feasibility randomised controlled trial is available . DOI