A randomised controlled trial (RCT) of brief internet-delivered education about managing symptoms of anxiety and depression in tertiary Chinese students

A randomised controlled trial (RCT) of brief internet-delivered education comparing immediate education vs. delayed education on symptoms of anxiety and depression in Chinese-speaking tertiary students

Status

Completed

Phases

Unknown

Study type

Interventional

Source

ANZCTR

Registry ID

ACTRN12612000214831

Enrollment

Registered

2012-02-20

Start date

2012-02-27

Completion date

2012-09-28

Last updated

2020-01-13

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

None listed

Brief summary

The purpose of this project is to explore the efficacy of a clinician-guided education course for symptoms of anxiety and depression in International Chinese-speaking tertiary students (aged 18+), administered over the internet in a randomised controlled trial. A secondary purpose is to determine the acceptability of the education protocol and materials to International Chinese-speaking tertiary students with symptoms of anxiety and depression. A tertiary purpose of this project is to explore the efficacy of a self-guided version of the course, with participants from the Waitlist Control Group.

Interventions

In this trial International Chinese-speaking Macquarie University students (participants) will receive access to a 6 week internet-delivered education course. Participants will be directed to read 3 online lessons about management of symptoms of stress, anxiety, low mood, and depression. One lesson will be completed every 7 to 14 days. Each lesson will take about 15 minutes to read. Participants will also have access to summaries and homework assignment for each lesson, and will read anonymous stories about students with similar symptoms, taking a further 20 minutes per week. All participants will also receive automatic emails and brief weekly (<10minutes week) supportive telephone calls from an intern Psychologist. Study questionnaires will be administered at application, pre-education, post-education, and at 3-months post-treatment. These will take about 20-30 minutes to complete. The treatment materials include cognitive behavioural treatment (CBT) skills.

Study design

Allocation

Randomised controlled trial

Intervention model

Parallel

Primary purpose

Educational / counselling / training

Masking

Open (masking not used)

Eligibility

Sex/Gender

All

Age

18 Years to No maximum

Healthy volunteers

Inclusion criteria

1. International Chinese-speaking Macquarie University student 2. Aged 18+ years 3. Self-identified difficulties managing stress, anxiety, low mood, or depression

Exclusion criteria

1. Severe depression (total score > 22 on the PHQ-9) 2. Suicidal intent or plan 3. Presenting problem not stress, anxiety, low mood, or depression

Outcome results