The Future Proofing Study: Design, methods and baseline characteristics of a prospective cohort study of the mental health of Australian adolescents

Abstract

Objectives:The Future Proofing Study (FPS) was established to examine factors associated with the onset and course of mental health conditions during adolescence. This paper describes the design, methods, and baseline characteristics of the FPS cohort. Methods:The FPS is an Australian school-based prospective cohort study with an embedded clusterrandomized controlled trial examining the effects of digital prevention programs on mental health.Data sources include self-report questionnaires, cognitive functioning, linkage to health and education records, and smartphone sensor data. Participants are assessed annually for five years. Results:The baseline cohort (N=6388, M=13.9 years) is broadly representative of the Australian adolescent population. The clinical profile of participants is comparable to other population estimates.Overall, 15.1% of the cohort met the clinical threshold for depression, 18.6% for anxiety, 31.6% for psychological distress, and 4.9% for suicidal ideation. These rates were significantly higher in adolescents who identified as female, gender diverse, sexuality diverse, or Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander (all ps<.05). Conclusions:This paper provides current and comprehensive data about the status of adolescent mental health in Australia. The FPS cohort is expected to provide significant insights into the risk, protective, and mediating factors associated with development of mental health conditions during adolescence.

The impact of COVID-19 and bushfires on the mental health of Australian adolescents: a cross-sectional study

“…This registered trial (ACTRN12619000855123) has ethical approval from the University of New South Wales Human Research Ethics Committee (HC180836), NSW Government State Education Research Applications Process Approval (SERAP 2019201) and relevant Catholic Schools Dioceses across Australia. Full details about the trial are detailed in the protocol paper and cohort profile paper [36,37]. Data reported in the current paper were part of baseline measurement of the trial collected in two cohorts between August 2020 and November 2021.…”

“…The questionnaire took up to 45-min to complete. See the cohort profile for additional details [37].…”

The relationship between cognitive and affective control and adolescent mental health

“…Seidler et al (2023) for a full list of measures included in the FPS. Only those measures included in the present study are described below.…”

“…Participants were first introduced to the study, after which they logged in to the study website, where they provided informed consent and completed the baseline questionnaire individually and without input from the study team. Next, participants downloaded the Future Proofing app to complete, amongst other tasks (seeWerner-Seidler et al, 2023), the backward digit-span and card-sorting task, which concluded the baseline session.Following the baseline assessment session, participants were encouraged to access the app and complete the cognitive tasks as many times as they wished in their own time (though for the present study, only data from tasks completed within 3 weeks of the baseline questionnaire were included). All participants received an AUD$20 gift card to reimburse personal data costs.…”

“…All participants received an AUD$20 gift card to reimburse personal data costs. For details on the cRCT aspect of the FPS, seeWerner-Seidler et al (2023).…”