Table 2.
Characteristics of the included reviews
| Intervention | Review | Intervention details | Setting; HICs/LMICs | Number of included studies | AMSTAR rating | Outcomes reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| School-based interventions | O'Mara and Lind [18] | Social and emotional health and well-being, positive youth development, health promotion, mental health promotion, primary prevention | Mostly HICs | 15 reviews | — | Subclinical internalizing and externalizing problems, academic achievement, mood disorders, anxiety, depressive symptoms, self-concept, self-esteem, coping skills, interpersonal skills, quality of peer and adult relationships, self-control, problem-solving, self-efficacy, school misbehavior, aggressive behavior and violence, interpersonal sensitivity, conflict resolution, school attendance, social functioning |
| Mason-Jones et al. [19] | School-based health care including comprehensive services based at schools, dedicated adolescent health services, school-linked services based at local health centers, and servicing a number of schools and other outreach | HICs | 27 (RCTs and observational studies) | 7 | Utilization of mental health services, ever considered suicide, attempted suicide | |
| Cheney et al. [20] | Nurture group (NG) intervention delivered in primary and secondary school settings. NG sessions typically include circle time meet and greet. A directed activity, aiming to develop cooperation, listening, teamwork, turn-taking, problem-solving, and self-esteem. Snack time. Free time to choose an activity from the range offered. Saying good-byes | HICs | 16 (RCTs and pre–post) | 8 | Social and emotional well-being | |
| Kim and Franklin [21] | Solution-focused brief therapy on behavioral problems in schools | HICs | 7 (RCT, quasi, and case report) | 6 | Changes in scores from Hare Self-Esteem Scale; Conners' Teacher Rating Scale; Conners' Parent Rating Scale; Feelings, Attitudes and Behaviors Scale for Children; Substance Abuse Subtle Screening Inventory Adolescent-2; and Child Behavior Checklist-Youth. | |
| Fothergill et al. [22] | Screening tools being used by school nurses for the identification of emotional, psychological, and behavioral problems among adolescents in schools. | HICs | None | 6 | Existing screening tools being applied by school nurses to detect mental ill health | |
| Calear and Christensen [23] | School-based prevention and early intervention programs for depression. Mostly including cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) delivered by a mental health professional or graduate student over 8–12 sessions. Other common therapeutic approaches employed included psychoeducation and interpersonal therapy | HICs | 42 RCTs | 7 | Depression | |
| Kavanagh et al. [24] | Cognitive behavioral therapy | HICs | 17 RCTs | 8 | Outcome related to depression, anxiety, and suicidality (actual or attempted suicide and suicidal ideation) | |
| Farahmand et al. [25] | Day therapy programs: a multidisciplinary community-based approach to the treatment of mental health issues | HICs | 29 programs | 7 | Academic outcomes, behavioral outcomes, conduct problems, depression, substance use, internalizing symptoms | |
| Katz et al. [26] | School-based suicide prevention programs: awareness/education curriculum, gatekeeper training, peer leadership training, screening, skills training, reconnecting youth, good behavior game | HICs | 16 programs | 5 | Students' and school staffs' knowledge and attitudes toward suicide, suicide attempts | |
| De Silva et al. [27] | Psychological interventions for suicide and self-harm prevention | HICs | 38 controlled studies and 6 systematic reviews | 6 | Mapping of existing literature | |
| Harrod et al. [28] | Any intervention that (1) targeted students without known suicidal risk (i.e., primary prevention); (2) had the prevention of suicide as one of its primary purposes; and (3) was delivered in the postsecondary educational setting in any country | HICs | 8 RCTs | 11 | Completed suicide, suicide attempt, suicidal ideation, changes in knowledge, attitudes and behaviors | |
| Harlow and Clough [29] | Suicide prevention programs that have been evaluated for indigenous youth | HICs | 11 programs | 6 | Suicide ideation, knowledge, attitude | |
| Community-based interventions | Bungay and Vella-Burrows [30] | Music, dance, singing, drama and visual arts, taking place in community settings or as extracurricular activities | Mostly HIC except one in Tanzania | 20 (RCTs and observational) | 5 | Behavioral changes, self-confidence, self-esteem, levels of knowledge, and physical activity |
| Waddell et al. [31] | Parent training or child social skills training and universal cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) | HICs | 15 RCTs | 6 | Conduct disorder, anxiety, and depression | |
| Durlak and Wells [32] | Primary prevention intervention designed specifically to reduce the future incidence of adjustment problems in currently normal populations, including efforts directed at the promotion of mental health | HICs | 144 programs | 5 | Competencies, performance, successful transitions | |
| Farahmand et al. [33] | Community-based mental health and behavioral programs | HICs | 33 (RCTs and observational) | 4 | Psychological, behavior, achievement, school connectedness, antisocial behavior, interpersonal, social skills community or prosocial activities, physical health | |
| Bower et al. [34] | Effectiveness of interventions for child and adolescent mental health problems in primary care, and interventions designed to improve the skills of primary care staff | HICs | RCTs and pre–post studies | 7 | Clinical outcomes, social, educational, satisfaction with treatment, costs, attitudes, knowledge, diagnostic and treatment behavior, costs | |
| Digital platforms | Clement et al. [35] | It was a mass media intervention, defined as an intervention that uses a channel of communication intended to reach large numbers, and is not dependent on person-to-person contact, for example, newspapers, billboards, pamphlets, DVDs, television, radio, cinema, some Web- and mobile phone–based media, street art, and ambient media | HICs | 22 RCTs | 11 | Discrimination or prejudice outcome measures |
| Musiat and Tarrier [36] | Computerized cognitive behavioral therapy (cCBT) interventions | HICs | 101 (observational studies) | 4 | Cost-effectiveness, geographic flexibility, time flexibility, waiting time for treatment, stigma, therapist time, effects on help-seeking and treatment satisfaction | |
| Montgomery et al. [27] | Media-based cognitive behavioral therapies | HICs | 11 RCTs | 11 | Behavioral disorders, therapist time | |
| Clarke et al. [38] | Online mental health promotion and prevention interventions | HICs | 28 observational studies | 6 | Anxiety, depression | |
| Calear and Christensen 2010 [39] | BRAVE for Children—ONLINE and BRAVE for Teenagers—ONLINE: based on cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), these programs consist of 10 weekly sessions for children and adolescents; two booster sessions presented 1 and 3 months after the intervention, and five or six parent sessions. The programs present information on managing anxiety, recognizing the physiological symptoms of anxiety, graded exposure, and problem-solving techniques. Project CATCH-IT is a free, Internet-based training program based on behavioral activation, CBT, and interpersonal psychotherapy. MoodGYM is a free, interactive, Internet-based program designed to prevent and decrease symptoms of depression in young people. Grip op je dip online is a free, Dutch language, CBT-based program aimed at 16- to 25-year-olds. Based on the face-to-face Grip op je dip course, the online program consists of six moderated chat sessions attended by six to eight participants. |
HICs | 4 programs | 9 | Anxiety and depression | |
| Kauer et al. [40] | Online services in facilitating mental health help-seeking | HICs | 18 (RCTs and observational studies) | 9 | Help-seeking, mental health | |
| Martin et al. [41] | Networked communication: e-mail and/or Web-based electronic diary; videoconference; and virtual reality. | HICs | 12 (RCTs and observational studies) | 9 | Clinical outcomes (e.g., symptom alleviation), patient-level impacts (e.g., improved health behaviors), patient and health care professional satisfaction and costs | |
| Farrer et al. [42] | A range of broad technology types including the Internet, audio, virtual reality, video, stand-alone computer programs, and/or a combination of these | HICs | 27 RCTs | 9 | Depression, anxiety | |
| Individual-/family-based interventions | Pratt and Woolfenden [43] | Eating disorder awareness, promotion of healthy eating attitudes and behaviors, as well as eating disorder awareness and coping with general adolescent issues, training in media literacy and advocacy skills | HIC | 12 RCTs | 8 | BMI, Eating Attitude Test, Eating Disorder Inventory, Sociocultural Attitudes Towards Appearance Questionnaire, social perception profile, body image assessment |
| Ekelend et al. [44] | Gross motor, energetic activity, for example, running, swimming, ball games and outdoor play of moderate to high intensity, or strength training, in contrast to “ordinary” physical activity (e.g., routine physical education (PE) classes, walking to school, or playtime activities of low intensity) for at least a duration of 4 weeks | Mostly HIC except one in Nigeria | 23 RCTs | 8 | Self-esteem | |
| Lubans et al. [45] | Three types of physical activity programs (i.e., outdoor adventure, sport and skill-based and physical fitness programs) | HICs | 15 (RCTs, quasi, and pre–post) | 9 | Social and emotional well-being | |
| Cooney et al. [46] | Exercise was defined as “planned, structured and repetitive bodily movement done to improve or maintain one or more components of physical fitness” | Mostly HICs except one in Thailand, one in Brazil | 39 RCTs | 11 | Depression, acceptability of treatment, number of participants completing the interventions; quality of life; cost; adverse events | |
| Larun et al. [47] | Interventions that included vigorous physical activity of clearly specified quality with a minimum duration of 4 weeks | HICs | 16 RCTs | 11 | Anxiety or depression symptoms post-treatment | |
| James et al. [48] | (1) The relative efficacy of CBT versus non-CBT active treatments; (2) the relative efficacy of CBT versus medication and the combination of CBT and medication versus placebo; and (3) the long-term effects of CBT | HICs | 41 RCTs | 11 | Remission, reduction in anxiety symptom, acceptability | |
| Cox et al. [49] | Any psychological therapy with any antidepressant medication; a combination of interventions (psychological therapy plus antidepressant medication) with either psychological therapies or antidepressant medication alone; a combination of interventions (psychological therapy plus antidepressant medication) compared with either intervention (psychological therapy or antidepressants) plus a placebo; and a combination of interventions (psychological therapy plus antidepressant medication) with a placebo or treatment as usual | HICs | 11 RCTs | Remission from depressive disorder, acceptability, suicide-related serious adverse events, dropouts | ||
| Cox et al. [50] | Any type of pharmacotherapy or psychological therapy | HICs | 9 RCTs | 11 | Prevention of a second or next episode, readmissions, time to relapse, functioning, depressive symptoms, dropouts, secondary morbidity | |
| Shinohara et al. [51] | Behavioral therapy, behavioral activation, social skills training assertiveness training, relaxation therapies, other psychological therapies | HICs | 25 RCTs | 11 | Treatment efficacy, treatment acceptability, remittance, improvement in depressive symptoms, improvement in other symptoms | |
| Weisz et al. [52] | Evidence-based psychotherapies | HICs | 52 RCTs | 8 | Measures of symptoms and functioning | |
| Shepperd et al. [53] | Mental health services providing specialist care, beyond the capacity of generic outpatient provision, which provide an alternative to inpatient mental health care | HICs | 7 RCTs | 11 | Disease-specific symptoms, general psychological functioning, acceptability, and cost | |
| Deenadayalan et al. [54] | HICs | 8 RCTs and observational studies | 6 | Symptoms, knowledge, attitude |
AMSTAR = assessment of the methodological quality of systematic reviews criteria; BMI = body mass index; HIC = high-income country; LMIC = low- and middle-income country; RCT = randomized controlled trial.