Clinical trial NCT06887569: Using Financial Incentives and Screening to Increase Engagement With Mental Health Services Among College Students in Chennai, India
Official title: Using Financial Incentives and Screening to Increase Engagement With Mental Health Services Among College Students in Chennai, India
Study type: INTERVENTIONAL
Overall status: RECRUITING
Phase: NA
Conditions: Depression/Anxiety
Lead sponsor: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Sponsor class: OTHER
Collaborators: name: Harvard University
name: University of California, Berkeley
name: University of Michigan
name: Institute for Financial Management and Research
name: Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab
name: Schizophrenia Research Foundation (SCARF India), Chennai, India
First posted: 2025-03-20
Enrollment: 3000
Sex: FEMALE
Minimum age (years): 18
Maximum age (years): 30
Standard ages: ADULT
Accepts healthy volunteers: yes
Allocation: RANDOMIZED
Intervention model: FACTORIAL
Primary purpose: OTHER

Brief summary: This study will evaluate the effectiveness of interventions to increase engagement with mental health services among a sample of college students in Chennai, India. The study is being conducted in partnership with an arts and science college for women in Chennai. The sample will be recruited within classrooms, during college hours. All students present in the classroom per the allotted time will be introduced to the study. The research team will obtain consent from those interested after screening them for age eligibility (between the ages of 18 and 30 years). Study participants will then complete a baseline survey including questions around demographics, perceptions of their own mental health, mental health treatment history, and the PHQ-ADS, a standardized composite screening tool for depression and anxiety. The experimental design is an RCT with 4 groups, randomized at the individual level: (1) a control group, which will watch a video with information about mental health and be able to access therapy in college and at SCARF, a mental health center in Chennai, at no cost for the duration of the study; (2) a screening group, in which, in addition to the interventions in the control group, students will be informed whether their responses to the PHQ-ADS questions fit in the standard risk categories of no, mild, moderate, or severe distress and corresponding recommendations for whether to make an appointment with a counselor/therapist; (3) a rewards group, in which, in addition to the interventions in the control group, students will be provided with a cash payment for attending their first therapy session; and (4) a combined screening and rewards group. The investigators will measure interest in, and take-up of, therapy at the individual level.


Eligibility criteria: Inclusion criteria:

* aged 18-30
* are present in the classrooms,
* consent to participate in the study

Exclusion criteria: None

Primary outcomes:
measure: Proportion of participants expressing interest in therapy
timeFrame: Immediately after treatment (Day 1)
measure: Proportion of participants making an appointment
timeFrame: From enrolment until two months after enrolment
Secondary outcomes:
measure: Proportion of participants taking-up of a mental health care app
timeFrame: Immediately after treatment (Day 1)
measure: Proportion of participants demanding for information about mental health
timeFrame: Immediately after treatment (Day 1)
measure: Proportion of participants attending therapy sessions
timeFrame: From enrolment until two months after enrolment
Other outcomes:
measure: Proportion of participants reporting they would consider seeking therapy in future
timeFrame: Immediately after treatment (Day 1)
measure: Proportion of participants reporting specific steps they would take to take care of their mental health
timeFrame: Immediately after treatment (Day 1)
measure: Proportion of participants reporting specific motivating/inhibiting factors for taking up therapy
timeFrame: Immediately after treatment (Day 1)
Locations:
city: Chennai
country: India
facility: College campus
state: Tamil Nadu
Study officials:
References: