Enhancing Treatment for Depressed Youth: A Randomised Trial of Adjunct Memory Specificity Training

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Current effects of treatment for depression in youth are modest. There is clear scope to enhance intervention in this critical period of early-onset depression. One way to do this is to target known cognitive vulnerabilities. This study will examine the effect of computerised memory specificity training (c-MeST) in addition to usual care, and test whether it enhances treatment effects and reduces risk of depression at follow-up. Youth aged 15-25 presenting to participating mental health service providers will be randomised to usual care + c-MeST or usual care. c-MeST involves completing a series of online modules providing personal memories with feedback to encourage more specific and detailed account of experiences. It is hypothesised that: • The c-MeST + usual care group will report significantly higher rates of remission of clinical and subclinical depression and lower severity of depressive symptoms at 1, 3, and 6 six-month follow-up, relative to a usual care group. • Improvements in memory specificity at 2 weeks will predict improvements in remission rates and severity of depressive symptoms at 1, 3 months and at 6 month follow-up. • The c-MeST + usual care group will report significant improvements on secondary outcomes of suicidal ideation, rumination, executive functioning, and problem-solving ability at 1, 3 months and six-month follow-up, relative to a usual care group.