Table 1. Characteristics of the included studies.
| Author (year) Study design | Setting and Sample | Intervention | Comparator | Outcome Measures |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Randomised controlled trials | ||||
| Alampay et al. (2020) Pilot RCT |
Setting: School-based, Philippines Participants: n = 186 Age: 9–16 (M: 11.88; SD: 1.84) Gender: 77 males (41.4%) and 109 females (58.6%) Diagnosis: Experience of some degree of behavioural problem, symptoms of emotional difficulties and/or peer problems (determined using SDQ) |
Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) adapted to Kamalyan Curriculum Duration: 8 weekly sessions (75 minutes for younger participants, 90 minutes for older participants) Delivery: Group format; delivered by school guidance counsellors and teachers n = 87 (17 lost to follow-up) |
Handicrafts (Craft based therapy) Duration: 8 weekly sessions (75 minutes for younger participants, 90 minutes for older participants) Delivery: Group format; delivered by facilitators from a women’s organisation that supports livelihood activities n = 99 (23 lost to follow-up) |
Depression Measures: SMFQ Anxiety Measures: STAIC Timings: End of treatment 8-weeks post-treatment |
| Bernal et al. (2019) RCT |
Setting: Clinic-based, Puerto Rico Participants: n = 121 Age: 13–17.5 (M, SD: NR) Gender: 56 males (46.3%) and 65 females (53.7%) Diagnosis: CDI score ≥20, CDRS-R ≥40, met full DSM-IV criteria for MDD, maintained clinically significant depressive symptoms for at least 6 weeks before randomisation |
Name: Culturally adapted Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and parent psychoeducation intervention (TEPSI) Duration: CBT: 12 sessions TEPSI: 8 2-hour sessions Delivery: CBT: delivered individually by Clinical Psychology graduate students TEPSI: delivered in a group format by 2 licensed Clinical Psychologists n = 60 (n = 13 lost to follow-up) |
Culturally adapted Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Duration: 12 sessions Delivery: delivered individually by Clinical Psychology graduate students n = 61 (n = 14 lost to follow-up) |
Depression Measures: CDI CDRS-R SIQ-Jr DISC-IV BDI-R Anxiety Measures: N/A Timings: Weeks 3, 5, 7, 9 of treatment End of treatment 3-months post-treatment 6-months post-treatment 9-months post-treatment 12-months post-treatment |
| Damra, Nassar & Ghabri (2014) Feasibility RCT |
Setting: Clinic-based, Jordan Participants: n = 18 Age: 10–12 (M = 11.3; SD:NR) Gender: All-male sample Diagnosis: Suffering from physical abuse and clinical symptoms of PTSD and depression for at least five weeks prior to treatment |
Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (TF-CBT) adapted for the Jordanian culture Duration: 10 60-minute sessions delivered over 2 weeks Delivery: Group-format delivered by two accredited children’s counsellors n = 9 (0 lost to follow-up) |
Wait-list control n = 9 |
Depression Measures: CDI Anxiety Measures: N/A Timings: End of treatment 4-months post-treatment |
| Ishikawa et al. (2019) RCT |
Setting: Clinic-based, Japan Participants: n = 51 Age: 8–15 (M = 10.90; SD = 2.00) Gender: 22 males (43.1%), 29 females (56.9%) Diagnosis: Experiencing an anxiety disorder as determined using the ADIS |
The Japanese Anxiety children/Adolescents Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (JACA-CBT) Duration: 8 1-hour weekly sessions (with an optional 3 booster sessions) Delivery: Face-to face delivered by 2 clinical psychologists n = 26 |
Wait-list control n = 25 |
Depression Measures: CDI DSRS Anxiety Measures: ADIS SCAS-C/SCAS-P Timings: Pre-treatment End of treatment 3-months post-treatment 6-months post-treatment |
| Khan, Malik, Ahmed & Riaz (2020) Feasibility RCT |
Setting: Orphanage, Pakistan Participants: n = 24 Age: 8–13 (M, SD: NR) Gender: All males Diagnosis: >30 on SCARED, not currently taking any medication nor receiving psychotherapy |
Coping Cat (CC) Cognitive Behavioural Therapy adapted into Urdu Duration: 12 40–60 minute sessions delivered weekly Delivery: Face-to-face delivered by post-graduate clinical psychologist n = 12 |
Wait-list control n = 12 (9 lost to follow-up) |
Depression Measures: N/A Anxiety Measures: SCARED CASI Timings: 1-week pre treatment Post-session 3 End of treatment 6-months post-treatment |
| Li et al. (2022) Pilot RCT |
Setting: Two primary schools, China Participants: n = 87 Age: 8–12 (M = 11, SD = .75) Gender: 54 male (62%), 33 female (38%) Diagnosis: Experience of at least one traumatic event and meets DSM–5 PTSD criterion for PTSD or partial PTSD using PCL-5 checklist |
Adapted version of Cohen’s trauma-focused cognitive behavioural therapy (TF-CBT) Duration: 10-sessions, each lasting up to 50 minutes Delivery: Face-to-face; 7 group sessions and 3 individual sessions, delivered by members of the protocol developer’s team (counsellors) from Beijing Normal University who held master’s degrees in social work n = 45 |
Treatment as usual at school site—usually including emotional catharsis techniques Duration: number of sessions decided by young person and school psychologist, each session lasting c. 45 minutes Delivery: School psychologists n = 42 |
Depression Measures: CDI-S Anxiety Measures: CSAS-C Timings: Baseline 2-weeks post-treatment 3-months post-treatment |
| Listug-Lunde et al. (2013) Pilot RCT |
Setting: One rural northern plains tribal school, USA Participants: n = 19 Age: 11–14 (CWD-A group: 11–14 years, M = 12.38, SD = .92, TAU group: 12–14 years, M = 12.5, SD = 1.07) Gender: 10 males (62.5%), 6 females (37.5%) (remaining 3 unknown) Diagnosis: Moderate levels of depression defined by raw scores of 15 or higher on the CDI |
Skills Development Class (culturally adapted Coping with Depression Course for Adolescents: CWD-A) Duration: 13 35 to 40-minute sessions, bi-weekly for 7 weeks followed by 2 booster sessions held within 1-month post-intervention Delivery: Group-format delivered by two therapists: One Indian Health Services mental health professional and one graduate student n = 10 (2 lost to follow-up) |
Treatment as usual Duration: NR Delivery: delivered by two therapists: One Indian Health Services mental health professional and one graduate student n = 9 (1 lost to follow-up) |
Depression Measures: CDI Anxiety Measures MASC Timings: Pre-treatment Post-treatment 3-months post-treatment |
| Ramdhonee-Dowlott al. (2021) RCT |
Setting: 6 residential care institutions (RSI), Mauritius Participants: n = 100 Age: 9–14 (M = 11.75, SD = 1.97) Gender: 24 males (24%), 76 females (76%) Diagnosis: RCI report on child/adolescent displaying difficulties in managing emotions or emotional distress, no clinical cut-off but all scored above 5 on the Emotional Symptoms subscale of the self-report SDQ |
Super Skills for Life (SSL) manualised CBT translated into French and adapted for Mauritian culture and use in RCI settings Duration: 8 weekly sessions of c.45 minutes Delivery: Face-to-face group format, delivered by developmental psychologist with 5 years of experience, assisted by one staff member at each host RCI n = 50 |
Wait-list control n = 50 |
Depression and Anxiety Measures: RCADS Video speech tasks Timings: 1-week pre-treatment 1-week post-treatment 3-months post-treatment |
| Rosselló & Bernal (1999) RCT (3 arm) |
Setting: School-based, Puerto Rico Participants: n = 71 Age: 13–11 (M: 14.10; SD: 1.40) Gender: 33 males (46%) and 38 Females (54%) Diagnosis: Scoring over 11 on the CDI and who met DSM-Il criteria for depression on the DISC-2 (parent or adolescent versions) |
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy adapted for Puerto-Rican youth Duration: 12 sessions delivered weekly Delivery: Face-to-face, individual delivery by advanced graduate clinical psychology students n = 25 Interpersonal Therapy (IPT) adapted for Puerto-Rican youth Duration: 12 sessions delivered weekly Delivery: Face-to-face individual delivery by advanced graduate clinical psychology students n = 23 |
Wait-list control n = 23 |
Depression Measures: CDI Anxiety Measures: N/A Timings: Pre-treatment End of treatment 3-months post-treatment |
| Rosselló, Bernal & Rivera-Medina (2008) RCT (4 arms) |
Setting: Schools, Puerto Rico Participants: n = 112 Age: 12–18 (M: 14.52; SD: 1.85). Gender: 50 males (44.6%) and 62 Females (55.4%) Diagnosis: Scoring over 11 on the CDI and who met DSM-Il criteria for depression on the DISC-2 (parent or adolescent versions) |
Individual Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Duration: 12 sessions delivered weekly Delivery: Face-to-face individual delivery by advanced graduate clinical psychology students n = 23 Individual Interpersonal Psychotherapy Duration: 12 sessions delivered weekly Delivery: Face-to-face individual delivery by advanced graduate clinical psychology students n = 31 |
Group Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Duration: 12 sessions delivered weekly Delivery: Face-to-face group-format by advanced graduate clinical psychology students n = 29 Group Interpersonal Psychotherapy Duration: 12 sessions delivered weekly Delivery: Face-to-face individual delivery by advanced graduate clinical psychology students n = 29 |
Depression Measures: CDI Anxiety Measures: N/A Timings: Pre-treatment End of treatment 3-months post-treatment |
| Saw, Tam & Bonn (2019) Pilot RCT |
Setting: School, Malaysia Participants: n = 20 Age: 16 (M, SD: NR) Gender: 10 males (50%) and 10 females (50%) Diagnosis: raw score above the cut-off point of 76 on RADS-2 |
Group Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Duration: 8 ninety-minute sessions delivered weekly Delivery: Group format, delivered by trained local school counsellors n = 10 |
Wait-list control n = 10 |
Depression Measures: RADS-2 ATQ-Malay Anxiety Measures: N/A Timings: Pre-treatment Mid-treatment (after session 4) Post-treatment (after session 8) 1-month post-intervention |
| Non-randomised trials (single treatment arm) | ||||
| Acarturk et al. (2019) Pilot study |
Setting: University-based, Turkey Participants: n = 13 Age: 13–17 (M: 14.9, SD: NR) Gender: 4 males (30.8%), 9 females (69.2%) Diagnosis: Diagnosis of anxiety or mood disorder based on K-SADS-PL despite taking a maximally tolerated SSRI for at least 12 weeks |
Culturally Adapted Transdiagnostic Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CA-CBT) Duration: 10 1-hour sessions Delivery: Group format, delivered by two psychologists. n = 13 (0 lost to follow-up) |
Not applicable |
Depression Measures: BDI Anxiety Measures: SCARED Timings: 1-week pre-treatment 1-week post-treatment 2-months post-treatment |
| Goodkind, LaNoue & Milford (2010) Pilot study |
Setting: School-based, USA Participants: n = 24 Age: 12–15 (M: 13.39, SD: NR) Gender: 7 males, 16 females Diagnosis: Past trauma experience. Specific screening criteria and cut-off scores unclear |
Cognitive Behavioural Intervention for Trauma in Schools (CBITS) Duration: 10 weekly sessions Delivery: Group-format delivered by a member of clinical staff and a cofacilitator n = 23 (1 lost to follow-up) |
Not applicable |
Depression Measures: CDI Anxiety Measures: MASC Timings: Pre-treatment End of treatment 3-months post-treatment 6-months post-treatment |
| Morsette et al. (2009) |
Setting: Rural American Indian Reservation, USA Participants: n = 7 (only 4 completed) Age: 11 to 12 years (M, SD: NR) Gender: NR Diagnosis: Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and symptoms of depression with history of trauma |
Culturally adapted Cognitive Behavioral Intervention for Trauma in Schools (CBITS) Duration: 10-week course of CBITS—Cognitive Behavioral Intervention for Trauma in Schools Delivery: Group-format n = 7 (3 lost to follow-up) |
Not applicable |
Depression Measures: CDI Anxiety Measures: CPSS Timings: Baseline Pre-treatment Post-treatment |
| Orgilés, Fernández-Martínez, Espada & Morales (2019) One-group quasi-experimental design |
Setting: School-based, Spain Participants: n = 119 Age: 8–12 (M = 9.39; SD = 1.26) Gender: 68 males (57.1%) and 51 females (42.9%), Diagnosis: ≥4 on emotional symptoms subscale of the SDQ–parent version |
Spanish adapted super skills for life (SSL) intervention for the prevention of anxiety and depression Duration: 8 45-minute weekly sessions over 8 weeks Delivery: Group-format delivered by 6 psychologists n = 119 (9 lost to follow-up) |
Not applicable |
Depression Measures: CDI Anxiety Measures: SCARED CALIS-C Timings: Pre-treatment End of treatment 1-year post-treatment |
| Case studies | ||||
| Binkley & Koslofsky (2016) |
Setting: Clinic-based, USA Participants: n = 1 Age: 17 Gender: Female Diagnosis: Diagnosis of moderate MDD with comorbid bulimia nervosa |
Family-Based Therapy for Bulimia Nervosa (FBT-BN) Duration: 5 sessions over 3 months Delivery: Delivered face-to-face, information about delivering clinician NR n = 1 |
Not applicable |
Depression Measures: CDI Anxiety Measures: N/A Timings: 1-month post-treatment |
| Duarté -Vélez, Bernal & Bonilla (2010) (Case study within larger RCT) |
Setting:
NR, Puerto Rico Participants: n = 1 Age: 16 years Gender: Male Diagnosis: Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), non-specified anxiety disorder and Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) |
Culturally adapted manual-based Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Duration: 12 weekly sessions (with 4 optional additional sessions) Delivery: Individually delivered by a psychotherapist n = 1 |
Not applicable |
Depression Measures: CDI CDRS-R Anxiety Measures: N/A Timings: Pre-treatment Session-by-session End of treatment 6-months post-treatment 9-months post-treatment 12-months post-treatment 15-months post-treatment |
Notes. NR: Not reported. Depression Measures: ATQ-Malay: Automatic Thoughts Questionnaire—Malay version (Oei & Mukhtar, 2008); BDI: Beck Depression Inventory (Beck, Steer & Brown, 1996); BDI-R: Beck Depression Inventory Revised (Bonilla, Bernal, Santos & Santos, 2004); CDI: Children’s depression Inventory (Kovacs, 1985; 2011); CDI-S: Children’s Depression Inventory Short Form (Vega et al., 2016); CDRS-R: Children’s depression rating scale–revised (Poznanski & Mokros, 1996); DSRS: Depression Self-Rating Scale (Birleson, 1981); K-SADS-PL: Kiddie Schedule for affective disorders present and lifetime version (Kaufman et al., 1997); SIQ-JR: Suicidal Ideation Questionnaire-Junior (Reynolds, 1988); RADS-2: Reynolds Adolescent Depression Scale–Second Edition (Reynolds, 2002); SMFQ: Short Mood and Feelings Questionnaire (Angold et al., 1995). Anxiety Measures: ADIS: The Anxiety Disorders Interview Schedule (Silveman & Albano, 1996); CALIS-C: Child Anxiety Life Interference Scale (Lyneham et al., 2013); CASI: Childhood Anxiety Sensitivity Index (Silverman et al., 1991); CSAS-C: Chinese version of the State Anxiety Scale for Children (Li & Lopez, 2007); CPSS: Child PTSD Symptom Scale (Foa et al., 2001); MASC: Multi-dimensional anxiety scale for children (March & Parker, 1999); SCARED: Screen for anxiety related emotional disorders (Birmaher et al., 1999); SCAS: C: Spence Children’s Anxiety Scale Child versions (Spence, 1998); SCAS: P: Spence Children’s Anxiety Scale Parent versions (Nauta 2004); STAIC: State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Children (Speilberger, 1973). Depression and Anxiety Measures: RCADS: The Revised Children’s Anxiety and Depression Scale (Chorpita et al., 2000)