ArticleJMIR mental health2021
Intervention Use and Symptom Change With Unguided Internet-Based Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Depression During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Log Data Analysis of a Convenience Sample.
Article in JMIR mental health, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 17 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
17 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- User Engagement With mHealth Interventions to Promote Treatment Adherence and Self-Management in People With Chronic Health Conditions: Systematic Review.Journal of medical Internet research · 2024Pooled it
- Outcome assessment of a complex mental health intervention in the workplace. Results from the MENTUPP pilot study.International archives of occupational and environmental health · 2023Trial
- Selective Prevention of Depression in Workers Using a Smartphone App: Randomized Controlled Trial.Journal of medical Internet research · 2023Trial
- An Unguided, Computerized Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Intervention (TreadWill) in a Lower Middle-Income Country: Pragmatic Randomized Controlled Trial.Journal of medical Internet research · 2023Trial
- Client perspectives of internet-based treatment for depression in Arabic-speaking countries.BMC psychology · 2026Article
- Article
- A scalable mental health intervention for depressive symptoms: evidence from a randomized controlled trial and large-scale real-world studies.NPJ digital medicine · 2025Article
- Self-Guided Smartphone App (Vimbo) for the Reduction of Symptoms of Depression and Anxiety in South African Adults: Pilot Quantitative Single-Arm Study.JMIR formative research · 2025Article
- Internet-based cognitive behavioral therapy for psychological symptoms during the final phase of the COVID-19 pandemic: a feasibility study.Frontiers in digital health · 2025Article
- Arabic-language digital interventions for depression in German routine health care are acceptable, but intervention adoption remains a challenge.Scientific reports · 2024Article
- Tailored internet-based psychological treatment for psychological problems during the COVID-19 pandemic: A randomized controlled trial.Internet interventions · 2023Article
- How does social media use influence the mental health of pancreatic cancer patients: a chain mediating effect of online social support and psychological resilience.Frontiers in public health · 2023Article
- Personalization strategies in digital mental health interventions: a systematic review and conceptual framework for depressive symptoms.Frontiers in digital health · 2023Review
- The effect of cognitive behavior therapy on anxiety and depression during COVID-19 pandemic: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Annals of general psychiatry · 2022Article
- Persistence of Mental Health Deterioration Among People Living Alone During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Periodically-repeated Longitudinal Study.Journal of epidemiology · 2022Article
- Efficacy of Internet-Based Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Depression and Anxiety among Global Population during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of a Randomized Controlled Trial Study.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Review
- Lockdown Measures Against the Spread of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Negative Effects for People Living With Depression.Frontiers in psychology · 2022Article
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Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundInternet- and mobile-based interventions are most efficacious in the treatment of depression when they involve some form of guidance, but providing guidance requires resources such as trained personnel, who might not always be available (eg, during lockdowns to contain the COVID-19 pandemic).
objectiveThe current analysis focuses on changes in symptoms of depression in a guided sample of patients with depression who registered for an internet-based intervention, the iFightDepression tool, as well as the extent of intervention use, compared to an unguided sample. The objective is to further understand the effects of guidance and adherence on the intervention's potential to induce symptom change.
methodsLog data from two convenience samples in German routine care were used to assess symptom change after 6-9 weeks of intervention as well as minimal dose (finishing at least two workshops). A linear regression model with changes in Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) score as a dependent variable and guidance and minimal dose as well as their interaction as independent variables was specified.
resultsData from 1423 people with symptoms of depression (n=940 unguided, 66.1%) were included in the current analysis. In the linear regression model predicting symptom change, a significant interaction of guidance and minimal dose revealed a specifically greater improvement for patients who received guidance and also worked with the intervention content (β=-1.75, t=-2.37, P=.02), while there was little difference in symptom change due to guidance in the group that did not use the intervention. In this model, the main effect of guidance was only marginally significant (β=-.53, t=-1.78, P=.08).
conclusionsGuidance in internet-based interventions for depression is not only an important factor to facilitate adherence, but also seems to further improve results for patients adhering to the intervention compared to those who do the same but without guidance.
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