Adapting Mental Health Interventions for War-Affected Youth Through Employment Programs

Summary

The research will first examine data obtained from YRI participants to investigate effects of the group sessions on psychosocial functioning outcomes in youth aged 15 - 24. The research also intends to examine whether youth participating in YRI and complementary income generating activities will fare better than an employment only control group. Finally, the research intends to examine whether utilizing lay health workers are a is cost-effective and scalable method for addressing mental health concerns.

The research will investigate the following hypotheses:

1. Participants who are exposed to YRI will demonstrate greater reduction in mental health and behavioral problems than participants who are waitlisted for YRI over the same period; emotion regulation will operate as a major mechanism of YRI improvements; high comorbidity will be a treatment modifier;
2. Improvements in mental health and functioning due to YRI will lead to (mediate) greater employment outcomes and superior economic self-sufficiency over time; and
3. Homelessness, orphanhood, young parenthood, and high problems in emotion regulation co-morbid with other mental health conditions will be major moderators lessening the effectiveness of YRI.
4. Lay and trained practitioners at agencies participating in the combined mental health-employment program will demonstrate high fidelity to evidence-based treatment components and that good satisfaction, social support, and professional exchange of evidence-based practices will emerge.

Conditions

• Anxiety Disorder/Anxiety State
• Depressive Disorder/Psychology
• Social Problems/Psychology
• Violence, Non-accidental

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

YRI

Youth Readiness Intervention (YRI) is an innovative, evidence-based mental health intervention to address co-morbid difficulties with externalizing problems (anger/emotion dysregulation) and internalizing problems (hopelessness/anxiety) among violence-affected youth. YRI methodology draws on evidence-based treatment elements commonly used in both cognitive-behavioral intervention and group interpersonal therapy. YRI has cross-cutting efficacy across a range of mental health conditions common in violence-affected youth. YRI will be delivered in 12 sessions over the course of 3 months.

OTHER

Income generating activity program

Income generating activity programming will be carried out by GOAL in partnership with St. George's foundation through use of their current funding. GOAL focuses on supporting people in need by providing healthcare resources, advocating and advancing child protection practices and policies, and administering livelihood programs to empower them improve their lives in a sustainable manner. The St. George's Foundation's addresses child welfare concerns by actively reaching out to homeless and orphaned children. The program is 4 months in length and consists of skills training, soft skills development (primarily in numeracy and literacy), and a cash transfer of $200.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Caritas Freetown

  collaborator OTHER

• World Bank

  collaborator OTHER

• The City College of New York

  collaborator OTHER

• Boston College

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Theresa Betancourt, ScD, MA · Harvard University T.H. Chan School of Public Health

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

HEALTH_SERVICES_RESEARCH

Masking

SINGLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

15 Years

Max Age

24 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2015-09-30

Primary Completion

2017-08-31

Completion

2017-10-31

Countries

• Sierra Leone

Study Locations