Destigmatizing perceptions about Black adolescent depression: randomized controlled trial of brief social contact–based video interventions

Abstract

Objective To test the utility of brief social contact–based video interventions of a Black adolescent girl to reduce stigmatized attitudes and increase help‐seeking intentions around adolescent depression. Methods We conducted a randomized controlled trial (RCT) with 14‐ to18‐year‐old healthy volunteers drawn from the general US population. We enrolled participants through a crowdsourcing platform (n = 1,093) and randomly assigned participants to one of three video conditions (117 s each): depressed (DEP); depressed, adjusted to aspects unique to being a Black adolescent girl (including experienced or internalized racism; ADJ); and control (CONT). The primary outcome was the Depression Stigma Scale (DSS); secondary outcomes were the General Health‐Seeking Questionnaire (GHSQ), and thermometers for Black and white race perception “warmth”. Results Following the intervention, the DSS changed from baseline across the three conditions (p < .001). ADJ outperformed both DEP (p = .031) and CONT (p < .001). A race‐by‐intervention interaction (p < .001) revealed different response profiles between Black (ADJ = DEP = CONT; p = .726) and non‐Black participants (ADJ > DEP > CONT; p < .001). DEP and ADJ both resulted in higher treatment‐seeking intentions for both the emotional problems and the suicidal thought subscales of the GHSQ. We found a race‐by‐intervention interaction (p = .01) for the Black thermometer, which revealed a significant 2° increase in warmth among white (p < .001), but not Black, viewers (p = .06). Conclusions On a short‐term basis, brief social contact–based videos proved effective among adolescents in reducing depression‐related stigma, increasing help‐seeking intentions, and providing an “empathic foothold” in the lives of racially stigmatized groups. Even as the enduring effects of these interventions remain to be determined, the deployment on social media of short videos opens new opportunities to reach a large number of at‐risk youth.”

A rapid review of the effectiveness of interventions to enhance equitable or overall access to mental health services by ethnic minority groups

“…The mean age of participants was reported by 10 studies though one only reported the age of the child being cared for (Michelson and Day 2014). In the nine other studies, the mean age ranged from 16.8 years old (Martin et al 2022) to 74 years old (Teng and Friedman 2009, Alvidrez et al 2005). Gender was reported across 11 studies and the percentage of participants who were female ranged from 9.4% (Ortega and Rosenheck 2002) to 100% (Robidoux et al 2023).…”

“…Interventions that focused on instigating change at the level of the individual include: Implementing psycho-educational programs to promote psychotherapy entry and attendance among older African Americans (Alvidrez et al 2005). Psycho-educational videos to increase help seeking intentions around addressing difficulties coping with depressive symptoms for adolescent from ethnic minority groups (Martin et al 2022). Patient education DVD and bilingual leaflet about dementia and getting help for memory symptoms for South Asian adults without known dementia aged >50 years (Mukadam 2017; Mukadam et al 2018).…”

“…One study reported that the study author delivered the intervention which consisted of a one-hour educational presentation at a faith-based organisation, but no further detail was provided (Teng and Friedman 2009). In the study by Martin et al (2022) the participants were recruited by researchers from a crowd sourcing platform.…”

“…The number of participants in each study ranged from 23 (Evans et al 2014) to 21,377 (Gorman et al 2021). Ten studies focused on adults (Alvidrez et al 2005, Arean et al 2008; Evans et al 2014; Gorman et al 2021, Hackett et al 2009; Mukadam et al 2018, Ortega and Rosenheck 2002, Seabrooke and Milne 2009, Teng and Friedman 2009; Yeung et al 2004), one on new mothers (Robidoux et al 2023), two on caregivers of children, with children as the target population for accessing services (Michelson and Day 2014, Sanchez et al 2022), and one on adolescents (Martin et al 2022).…”

Collaborating with transgender youth to educate healthcare trainees and professionals: randomized controlled trial of a didactic enhanced by brief videos

“…In prior work we had proven the efficacy of brief videos (< 110 s) to reduce depression-related stigma and increase treatment-seeking intentions among white [ 25 ], Black [ 26 ], and transgender [ 27 ] protagonists of a similar age. The active component common across the three studies was an adolescent sharing their personal narrative in an emotionally legitimate manner that highlighted improvements related to acceptance (of racial or gender diversity) and/or treatment (for depression and attendant suicidal ideation).…”