The goal of this clinical trial is to the efficacy of the Building a Strong Identity and Coping Skills intervention within a sample of low-income and minoritized youth aged 11-14 who are seeking mental health treatment and have been placed on a waitlist to receive services. The aims of this study are to: (1) confirm the efficacy of BaSICS by replicating previous findings, (2) Examine the changes of coping mechanisms and symptom change over the course of the BaSICS intervention, and (3) test models of physiologic stress reactivity and regulation to capture biological "risk" and recalibration. Cohorts of 20 participants will randomly be enrolled in either the intervention (10) or control (10) groups. Participants enrolled in the intervention group will complete the BaSICS program and participants enrolled in the no intervention group will not be enrolled in the intervention program. The BaSICS program is designed to help treat anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress symptoms and disorders and have direct effects on physiologic stress response systems (hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis). Researchers will compare the intervention and no intervention groups to see if there is a difference in the reduction of markers for anxiety, depression, and suicide scores, changes in coping mechanism, and HPA reactivity profiles
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
SINGLE
Enrollment
360
Psychoeducational program to teach children coping skills, healthy identity development, and collective social action
Pennsylvania Psychiatric Institute
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, United States
NOT_YET_RECRUITINGPenn State Health Medical Group - Psychiatry and Behavioral Health
Hershey, Pennsylvania, United States
RECRUITINGPenns Valley Area School District
Spring Mills, Pennsylvania, United States
NOT_YET_RECRUITINGDr. Edwin L. Herr Clinic
State College, Pennsylvania, United States
RECRUITINGPenn State Psychological Clinic
State College, Pennsylvania, United States
RECRUITINGAnxiety
Changes in the number of anxiety problems that children report. Anxiety problems will be measured using the Screen for Child Anxiety Related Disorders (SCARED), Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL), and Youth Self Report (YSR).
Time frame: Pre-post (3 months) and Pre-follow up (6 and 12 months)
Depression
Changes in the number of depressive symptoms that children report. Depressive symptoms will be measured using the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9A), CBCL, and YSR.
Time frame: Pre-post (3 months) and Pre-follow up (6 and 12 months)
Suicide Risk Markers
Changes in the number of suicide risk markers that children report. Suicide risk markers will be measured using the Child Trauma Screen (CTS) and Mini Kid.
Time frame: Pre-post (3 months) and Pre-follow up (6 and 12 months)
Engagement Coping Skills Acquisition
Changes in the number of coping skills that children can report. Engagement Coping Skills Acquisition will be assessed with the Responses to Stress Questionnaire (RSQ), Children's Sadness Management Scale (CSMS) and Coping Skills Scale (CSS).
Time frame: Pre-post (3 months) and Pre-follow up (6 and 12 months)
HPA Reactivity Profile
Changes in levels of salivary cortisol across a 90-minute Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) protocol
Time frame: Pre-post (3 months) and Pre-follow up (6 and 12 months)
Collaborative Coping
Changes in the number of collaborative coping skills that children report. Collaborative Coping will be assessed with the Collaborative Coping Discussion, Youth Civic and Character Measure (YCCM), and Social Skills Improvement System (SSIS).
Time frame: Pre-post (3 months) and Pre-follow up (6 and 12 months)
Sociocultural Identity Development
Changes in the sociocultural identity beliefs that children report. Sociocultural identity beliefs will be assessed with the Child and Adolescent Social Support (CASS), Early Identity Exploration Scale (EIES), and Multigroup Ethnic Identity Measure (MEIM).
Time frame: Pre-post (3 months) and Pre-follow up (6 and 12 months)
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