Adolescent Behavior, Health Behavior, Mental Health Wellness 1
Conditions
Keywords
adolescence, prevention, wellbeing, evaluation, effectiveness, school-based program
Brief summary
This study evaluates the short- and long-term effects on psychological wellbeing and health-related behaviours of the updated version of a universal school-based program called Diario della Salute (DDS-2) in Italian students aged 11-13 years.
Detailed description
The updated version of Diario della Salute (DDS-2) is a universal school-based intervention aimed at promoting psychological and emotional well-being and preventing unhealthy and risky behaviours (cigarettes smoking, alcohol abuse, unhealthy eating habits, physical inactivity) in preadolescence. The program is composed by 5 highly standardized interactive units delivered by previously trained teachers during school hours on emotional and social issues related to developmental tasks in adolescence. The kit includes: 1) a teacher's manual, 2) a booklet for each participating student, 3) a booklet for parents of each participating student. The objective is to promote and reinforce adolescents' emotional and social skills as factors contributing to adolescent well-being and health. A randomised controlled trial with two parallel groups is performed, with 1:1 allocation ratio, in two different Regions of Italy (Piedmont and Veneto). Schools are randomly assigned to one of the two groups (DDS-2 intervention vs. no intervention) and are used as the unit of allocation. Individual participants (i.e. students) are the unit of analysis. Schools are matched by number of students and average socioeconomic status. Eligible schools are identified from the list of all schools having students from 11 to 13 located in study sites. A number of eligible schools accounting for the requested number of students in the target grades is invited to participate in the study. If a school does not respond to the invitation or declines to participate, the school recruitment process is repeated, and another eligible school is invited to participate. The process continues until achievement of the sample size. No incentive is offered to students, families and schools for participating in the study. A paper-and-pencil self-report anonymous questionnaire developed by the research group is used to determine whether the interventions have changed the outcomes. The questionnaire will be administered in classes by the researchers at baseline, at the end of the intervention and one-year after the end of the intervention (at equal intervals both in the intervention and in the control group). The questionnaire consists of the following sections: 1) demographics, 2) emotional and social skills, 3) psychological wellbeing, 4) school experience, 5) unhealthy and risky behaviours, 6) prosocial and aggressive behaviours. Questionnaires are linked through an anonymous self-generated code.
Interventions
BEHAVIORALDiario della Salute (DDS-2)
The updated version of Diario della Salute program (DDS-2) includes: 1) teachers' manual, 2) a booklet for teens telling the story of four same-age students (e.g. experimenting with risky behaviours, conflicting feelings and thoughts, need for independence and control, etc.), 3) a booklet for parents telling the experience of a mum and a dad with teenage children (e.g. problems in the relationship with teenage children, family conflicts, parental control and supervision, family communication, etc.).
Sponsors
Eclectica Sas di Beccaria Franca, Ermacora Antonella e C.
University of Turin, Italy
University of Eastern Piedmont
Azienda Sanitaria Locale CN2 Alba-Bra
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
PREVENTION
Masking
NONE
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
11 Years to 13 Years
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
1. public/government schools, 2. at least two classes attended by students aged 11-13, 3. not participating in other school-based programs with similar objectives targeted to the classes of interest, 4. providing consensus to study participation. In participating schools, all classes of students aged between 11 and 13 years are eligible to be enrolled in the study.
Exclusion criteria
1. private schools, 2. less than two classes attended by students aged 11-13, 3. involved in other school-based programs with similar objectives targeted to the classes of interest. In participating schools, students whose parents opt out from the study are excluded.
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Psychological well-being (Brief Psychological Wellbeing Inventory) | one month after intervention completion | Four scales (3 items per scale) from Brief Psychological Wellbeing Inventory (PWB, Ryff & Keyes, 1995 - Italian version by Cicognani, Zani, 1999) assessing different areas of perceived wellbeing such as autonomy, environmental mastery, positive relations with others, self-acceptance |
| Psychosomatic disorders (Health Behaviors in School-aged Children - Symptom checklist) | one month after intervention completion | 8 items from the Italian version of HBSC (Health Behaviors in School-aged Children - Symptom checklist (Haugland et al., 2001; Raves-Sieberer et al., 2009) assessing the frequency of perceived psychological and somatic disorders |
| Health status (Health Behaviors in School-aged Children Questionnaire) | one month after intervention completion | 1 item from the Italian version of HBSC (Health Behaviors in School-aged Children) Questionnaire assessing the general perceived health status. |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| School success (Health Behavior Questionnaire) | one month after intervention completion | 1 item from the Health Behavior Questionnaire (Jessor et al., 1992 - Italian version by Bonino et al., 2003) assessing the school performance |
| Cigarette smoking (HBSC Questionnaire) | one month after intervention completion | 3 items from the Italian version of HBSC (Health Behaviours in School-aged Children) Questionnaire assessing cigarette smoking behavior |
| Frequency of cigarette smoking (HBSC Questionnaire) | one month after intervention completion | 1 item from the Italian version of HBSC (Health Behaviours in School-aged Children) Questionnaire assessing the number of smoked cigarettes in the last month |
| Drunkenness (HBSC Questionnaire) | one month after intervention completion | 3 items from the Italian version of HBSC (Health Behaviours in School-aged Children) Questionnaire assessing the frequency of drunkenness |
| Eating habits (HBSC Questionnaire) | one month after intervention completion | 16 items from the Italian version of HBSC (Health Behaviours in School-aged Children) Questionnaire assessing the frequency of use of healthy and unhealthy food |
| Eating style (HBSC Questionnaire) | one month after intervention completion | 2 items from the Italian version of HBSC (Health Behaviours in School-aged Children) Questionnaire assessing the frequency of healthy and unhealthy eating habits per week |
| Physical activity (HBSC Questionnaire) | one month after intervention completion | 4 items from the Italian version of HBSC (Health Behaviours in School-aged Children) Questionnaire assessing the frequency of physical activity per week |
| Physical inactivity (HBSC Questionnaire) | one month after intervention completion | 6 items from the Italian version of HBSC (Health Behaviours in School-aged Children) Questionnaire assessing the frequency of sedentary behaviours per day |
| Alcohol use (HBSC Questionnaire) | one month after intervention completion | 3 items from the Italian version of HBSC (Health Behaviours in School-aged Children) Questionnaire assessing the use of alcohol |
| Verbal and physical aggression (Verbal and Physical Aggression Scale) | one month after intervention completion | 20 items from Verbal and Physical Aggression Scale (Caprara & Pastorelli, 1988) assessing the frequency of aggressive behaviors |
| Prosocial behaviours (Prosocial Behaviours Scale) | one month after intervention completion | 15 item from Prosocial Behaviours Scale (Caprara & Pastorelli, 1988) assessing the frequency of prosocial behaviours |
Other
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Emotional skills (Self- Efficacy Scale) | one month after intervention completion | 27 items from the Italian version of Self- Efficacy Scale (Bandura, 1997 - Italian version by Caprara et al., 2001) assessing the perceived individual emotional skills |
| Social skills (Self- Efficacy Scale) | one month after intervention completion | 13 27 items from the Italian version of Self- Efficacy Scale (Bandura, 1997 - Italian version by Caprara et al., 2001) assessing the perceived individual social skills |
| Satisfaction with school (School Situation Questionnaire) | one month after intervention completion | 4 scales (5 items per scale) from the School Situation Questionnaire (Santinello & Bertarelli, 2002) assessing the quality of relationship with schoolmates and teachers, self-esteem at school, attitude towards learning |
Countries
Italy
Outcome results
None listed