Author Identifier

Cheuk Yan Lau: https://orcid.org/0009-0001-0754-7418

Document Type

Journal Article

Publication Title

Global Mental Health

Volume

12

Publisher

Cambridge University Press

School

School of Arts and Humanities

Publication Unique Identifier

10.1017/gmh.2025.33

Funders

College of Family, Home and Social Sciences at Brigham Young University

Comments

Saasa, S., Ward, K. P., Sambo, C. G., Barrett, P., & Lau, C. Y. (2025). Efficacy of a school-based mental health intervention among Zambian youth: a cluster-randomized controlled trial. Cambridge Prisms: Global Mental Health, 12. https://doi.org/10.1017/gmh.2025.33

Abstract

While many children in Africa face notable psychological problems, the majority do not receive needed mental health services. The My FRIENDS Youth Program, a universal cognitivebehavioral intervention for anxiety prevention and resilience enhancement, has demonstrated effectiveness across cultures in children and adolescents. This study explores whether the program's effectiveness extends to Zambian children. Participants were 75 children and adolescents (53% female, ages 10-15) attending low-income schools in Zambia. Four schools were randomly assigned to an intervention (n=44) or waitlist control (n=31). The intervention consisted of 10 weekly sessions plus two booster sessions administered in group format. Assessments were conducted at pre-intervention, immediately post-intervention, and 3-month follow-up. Data were analyzed using longitudinal multilevel modeling and controlled for child and parent sociodemographic characteristics. Intervention participation did not lead to reductions in anxiety, depression, or parent-child relationship conflict but was associated with reductions in parent-reported internalizing and externalizing symptoms, attention problems, and increases in positive parent-child relationships. However, both the intervention and control groups exhibited lower anxiety symptoms from Post-Intervention to 3-Month Follow-Up, suggesting potentially delayed effects. Future research may need to adapt this intervention to meet the needs of children in Zambia.

DOI

10.1017/gmh.2025.33

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

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Psychology Commons

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