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A Single-Arm Trial of a Web-Based Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Mental Health Promotion Intervention for University Students

NCT07701330 · Status: COMPLETED · Phase: NA · Type: INTERVENTIONAL · Enrollment: 626

Last updated 2026-07-14

No results posted yet for this study

Summary

University students experience high rates of psychological distress and frequently encounter barriers to accessing professional mental health support. Web-based interventions may provide a scalable and accessible approach for promoting mental health and well-being in university settings. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) is a transdiagnostic behavioural intervention that aims to increase psychological flexibility and has demonstrated beneficial effects on a range of psychological and academic outcomes among university students.

YOLO (You Only Live Once) is a four-week, self-guided, web-based ACT mental health promotion program developed for university students. Previous pilot and randomized controlled evaluations of YOLO demonstrated significant improvements in psychological well-being, distress, and academic functioning. Following these encouraging findings, YOLO was integrated into the University of Queensland's suite of digital well-being resources for students, and the present study was designed to evaluate its university-wide implementation using a prospective single-arm interventional approach.

The study aims to evaluate the preliminary effectiveness of the YOLO program in improving psychological distress, well-being, life satisfaction, academic performance, and psychological flexibility/inflexibility processes. In addition, the study will examine the feasibility, acceptability, usability, and engagement associated with participation in the intervention and investigate whether changes in psychological flexibility/inflexibility processes are associated with improvements in mental health and well-being outcomes. Findings from this study are expected to inform the future implementation and dissemination of web-based ACT interventions within university settings.

Conditions

  • Psychological Distress
  • Academic Stress

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

YOLO intervention: 4-week web-based intervention

The study includes two assessment pathways (Full research Arm and Minimal research Arm), but these do not constitute separate intervention arms because all participants will receive immediate access to the web-based YOLO program after providing informed consent. The intervention consists of four online modules, each based on the core principles of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), and participants will be encouraged to complete one module per week. The program is designed to promote psychological flexibility through the following topics: 1. values and committed action; 2. cognitive defusion; 3. acceptance and willingness; 4. mindfulness and the observing self. Each module includes animated presentations, YouTube videos, audio recordings, and experiential exercises grounded in ACT principles. To support engagement, participants will receive automated reminders, one supplementary learning activity per module, module summaries upon completion, and invitations to complete.

Sponsors & Collaborators

  • University of Bologna

    collaborator OTHER

  • The University of Queensland

    lead OTHER

Study Design

Allocation
NA
Purpose
PREVENTION
Masking
NONE
Model
SINGLE_GROUP

Eligibility

Min Age
18 Years
Sex
ALL
Healthy Volunteers
Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start
2019-06-25
Primary Completion
2025-08-31
Completion
2025-08-31

Countries

  • Australia

Study Locations

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Read the full study record

This page highlights key information. For complete eligibility criteria, study locations, investigator contacts, and the full protocol, visit the original record on ClinicalTrials.gov.

View NCT07701330 on ClinicalTrials.gov