Meet Me on the Pitch: Developing and Testing a Community-Based Sports and Behavioral Health Intervention for Youth

N/ANot Yet RecruitingNCT07339228

University of California, San Francisco480 enrolled

Overview

This study evaluates Meet Me on the Pitch (MMotP), a community-based intervention that integrates sports, schools, and behavioral health with the goal of improving the behavioral health, well-being and academic performance of youth. MMotP is a novel approach that builds on evidence-based practices by using sports as a means to foster social-emotional development and address barriers to academic, health, and social services. The study assesses feasibility, acceptability, and short-term outcomes through a randomized controlled trial comparing MMotP to standard sports programming. The intervention will be implemented by the non-profit organization Soccer Without Borders and evaluated by the University of California, San Francisco.

Meet Me on the Pitch (MMotP) is an innovative community-based intervention designed to improve the behavioral health, well-being and academic performance of youth (ages 14-21). The six-session intervention combines soccer-based activities with behavioral health education using the DNA-V model, a youth-focused adaptation of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). By training trusted community members, specifically soccer coaches, to deliver a tailored behavioral health intervention, MMotP addresses barriers to academic, health, and social services while fostering social-emotional development. This study evaluates MMotP through a parallel randomized controlled trial. Youth participants will be randomized within their soccer teams to either the supplemental MMotP intervention or just standard sports programming. The study will assess changes in primary outcomes, including mental health (psychological flexibility and self-efficacy) and academic support-seeking behaviors, as well as secondary outcomes related to social connection, school engagement, and access to services. Youth will complete surveys at baseline, 3 months, and 6 months to measure these outcomes. MMotP will be implemented by Soccer Without Borders in the San Francisco Bay Area and Colorado and evaluated by the University of California, San Francisco. This study is funded by the National Institute of Nursing Research.

Study Type

INTERVENTIONAL

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

PREVENTION

Interventions

Meet Me on the Pitch (MMotP)BEHAVIORAL

Meet Me on the Pitch is a six-session behavioral health intervention delivered by trained Soccer Without Borders coaches to small groups of youth, ages 14-21. Sessions are held weekly at school sites, typically after school. The six one-hour sessions follow a consistent structure that includes a brief preview of the day's session and a review of the prior session; three learning goals; and worksheets and play-based activities to facilitate learning and reinforce key concepts. In Session 1, participants explore identities and identify values to help guide action in future sessions. In Session 2, participants establish a personal or academic goal, identify barriers and facilitators, and set an actionable step to support their goal by the following session. In Session 3, coaches introduce the DNA-V model and help participants develop psychological skills to reach their goals. In Session 4- 6, participants use the DNA-V Discussion Tool and plan additional short-term actionable steps to con

Outcomes

Primary Outcomes

Psychological Flexibility

Self-reported response to the Avoidance \& Fusion Questionnaire (AFQ-Y8), using 8-item version adapted for youth. Each item is scored on a 4-point Likert scale from 1 (Not at All True) to 4 (Very Much True). Responses are summed for a total score.