Effectiveness of a guided mental health chatbot for youth living in Jordan in communities exposed to adversity

Scalable technology for adolescents and youth to reduce stress (STARS) - Randomised controlled trial

Status

Active, not recruiting

Phases

Unknown

Study type

Interventional

Source

ISRCTN

Registry ID

ISRCTN10152961

Enrollment

344

Registered

2023-05-18

Start date

2023-07-06

Completion date

Unknown

Last updated

2026-02-02

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

Conditions

Common mental disorders

Interventions

STARS STARS is a brief, 10-session intervention developed to address emotional distress experienced by adolescents and youth. The 10 sessions are each around 20-25 minutes of content delivered in a co

(2) Emotions are not our enemies (psychoeducation about emotions)

(3-4) Breathe to relax (emotion regulation techniques, such as slow breathing)

(5-6) What we do can change how we feel (behavioural activation)

(7) Managing problems (problem management techniques)

(8-9) Talking kindly to yourself (thought challenging)

and (10) Put your skills together (consolidating learnings and planning for the future). In addition, the intervention also encourages the user to practice and apply the skills in their own life, whic

Eligibility

Sex/Gender

All

Age

18 Years to 21 Years

Inclusion criteria

Inclusion criteria: 1. Any person living in Jordan who can read English or Arabic 2. Is between the ages of 18 and 21 years 3. Is experiencing moderate levels of psychological distress as determined by a score of 20 or above on the Kessler distress scale, 10-item version (K10) 4. Has access to a device for intervention delivery or is willing to use one at a participating centre

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion criteria: 1. Persons under 18 years of age or over 21 years of age 2. People at imminent risk of suicide (as defined by the mhGAP intervention guide)

Design outcomes

Primary

Measure	Time frame
Measured at all timepoints (at the beginning of the study, after 8 weeks and again 3 months later): 1. Symptoms of anxiety (Hopkins Symptom Checklist anxiety subscale; HSCL-25) 2. Symptoms of depression (HSCL-25 depression subscale)	—

Secondary

Measure	Time frame
Current secondary outcome measures as of 17/08/2023: Measured at all timepoints (at the beginning of the study, after 8 weeks and again 3 months later) unless noted: 1. Psychological distress (Kessler Psychological Distress scale; K10) [at screening, 8 weeks after baseline and again 3 months later] 2. Symptoms of depression (Patient Health Questionnaire; PHQ-2) [only during the STARS intervention, i.e., in every second chatbot session] 3. Functioning (WHO Disability Assessment Schedule; WHODAS 2.0) 4. Subjective wellbeing (WHO Well-Being Index; WHO-5) 5. Self-identified problems (Psychological Outcomes Profiles; PSYCHLOPS) 6. Agency (agency subscale of the State Hope Scale; SHS-A) 7. Mental health care use (2 items) 8. User-satisfaction questionnaire (Client Satisfaction Questionnaire; CSQ-I) [only at post-assessment (8 weeks after baseline)] Previous secondary outcome measures: Measured at all timepoints (at the beginning of the study, after 8 weeks and again 3 months later) unless noted: 1. Psychological distress (Kessler Psychological Distress scale; K10) 2. Symptoms of depression (Patient Health Questionnaire; PHQ-2) 3. Functioning (WHO Disability Assessment Schedule; WHODAS 2.0) 4. Subjective wellbeing (WHO Well-Being Index; WHO-5) 5. Self-identified problems (Psychological Outcomes Profiles; PSYCHLOPS) 6. Agency (agency subscale of the State Hope Scale; SHS-A) 7. Mental health care use (2 items) 8. User-satisfaction questionnaire (Client Satisfaction Questionnaire; CSQ-I) [only at post-assessment (8 weeks after baseline)]	—

Measure

Time frame

Current secondary outcome measures as of 17/08/2023: Measured at all timepoints (at the beginning of the study, after 8 weeks and again 3 months later) unless noted: 1. Psychological distress (Kessler Psychological Distress scale; K10) [at screening, 8 weeks after baseline and again 3 months later] 2. Symptoms of depression (Patient Health Questionnaire; PHQ-2) [only during the STARS intervention, i.e., in every second chatbot session] 3. Functioning (WHO Disability Assessment Schedule; WHODAS 2.0) 4. Subjective wellbeing (WHO Well-Being Index; WHO-5) 5. Self-identified problems (Psychological Outcomes Profiles; PSYCHLOPS) 6. Agency (agency subscale of the State Hope Scale; SHS-A) 7. Mental health care use (2 items) 8. User-satisfaction questionnaire (Client Satisfaction Questionnaire; CSQ-I) [only at post-assessment (8 weeks after baseline)] Previous secondary outcome measures: Measured at all timepoints (at the beginning of the study, after 8 weeks and again 3 months later) unless noted: 1. Psychological distress (Kessler Psychological Distress scale; K10) 2. Symptoms of depression (Patient Health Questionnaire; PHQ-2) 3. Functioning (WHO Disability Assessment Schedule; WHODAS 2.0) 4. Subjective wellbeing (WHO Well-Being Index; WHO-5) 5. Self-identified problems (Psychological Outcomes Profiles; PSYCHLOPS) 6. Agency (agency subscale of the State Hope Scale; SHS-A) 7. Mental health care use (2 items) 8. User-satisfaction questionnaire (Client Satisfaction Questionnaire; CSQ-I) [only at post-assessment (8 weeks after baseline)]

—

Countries

Jordan

Contacts

Public ContactKenneth Carswell

carswellk@who.int+41-22-791-5024

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ISRCTN (via WHO ICTRP) · Data processed: Feb 7, 2026