A growth mindset intervention to improve mental health in adolescents during COVID-19 |
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| Authors: | Nikolette P. Lipsey Jeni L. Burnette Whitney Becker Levi R. Baker Jordyn McCrimmon Joseph Billingsley |
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| Affiliation: | 1. Penn State University, Mont Alto, Pennsylvania, USA;2. North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA;3. University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, North Carolina, USA;4. Marshall University, Huntington, West Virginia, USA |
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| Abstract: | COVID-19 poses a considerable threat to adolescent mental health. We investigated depression rates in teens from pre to post-COVID. We also explored if leveraging a growth mindset intervention (“Healthy Minds”) could improve adolescent mental health outcomes during the pandemic, especially for adolescents experiencing the most distress. In Study 1, we recruited youth from schools in a rural southern community (N = 239) and used a pre-post design. In Study 2, we recruited an online sample (N = 833) and used a longitudinal randomized control trial design to test the effectiveness of Healthy Minds. Across both studies, there is evidence of higher rates of depression in youth during COVID-19, relative to pre-pandemic numbers. In Study 1, the intervention effectively changed psychological and behavioral processes related to mental health, especially for adolescents experiencing greater COVID-19 stress. However, in Study 2, the intervention failed to impact depression rates or symptoms at follow-up. |
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| Keywords: | adolescents COVID-19 growth mindsets interventions mental health |
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