Evidence map›Paper›PMID 35172741›Full record

Observational studyBMC primary care2022

Group-tailored feedback on online mental health screening for university students: using cluster analysis.

Seonmi Lee, Jiwoo Lim, Sangil Lee, Yoon Heo, Dooyoung Jung

Abstract readObservational Study
In one paragraph

Observational study in BMC primary care, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
8citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

8 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Trial
  3. The topology of adolescent mental health.medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences · 2026
    Article
  4. Article
  5. Article
  6. Article
  7. Article
  8. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Seonmi LeeDepartment of Biomedical Engineering, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology, 50, UNIST-gil, Ulsan, 44919, Republic of Korea.
Jiwoo LimDepartment of Biomedical Engineering, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology, 50, UNIST-gil, Ulsan, 44919, Republic of Korea.
Sangil LeeDepartment of Biomedical Engineering, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology, 50, UNIST-gil, Ulsan, 44919, Republic of Korea.
Yoon HeoHyperconnect, Seoul, Yeongdong-daero, Ulsan, Republic of Korea.
Dooyoung JungDepartment of Biomedical Engineering, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology, 50, UNIST-gil, Ulsan, 44919, Republic of Korea. dooyoung@unist.ac.kr.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundThe method by which mental health screening result reports are given affects the user's health behavior. Lists with the distribution of scores in various mental health areas is difficult for users to understand, and if the results are negative, they may feel more embarrassed than necessary. Therefore, we propose using group-tailored feedback, grouping people of similar mental health types by cluster analysis for comprehensive explanations of multidimensional mental health.

methodsThis cross-sectional, observational study was conducted using a qualitative approach based on cluster analysis. Data were collected via a developed mental screening website, with depression, anxiety, sleep problems, perfectionism, procrastination, and attention assessed for 2 weeks in January 2020 in Korea. Participants were randomly recruited, and sample size was 174. Total was divided into 25 with severe depression/anxiety (SDA+) and 149 without severe depression/anxiety (SDA-) according to the PHQ-9 and GAD-7 criteria. Cluster analysis was conducted in each group, and an ANOVA was performed to find significant clusters. Thereafter, structured discussion was performed with mental health professionals to define the features of the clusters and construct the feedback content initially. Thirteen expert counselors were interviewed to reconstruct the content and validate the effectiveness of the developed feedback.

resultsSDA- was divided into 3 using the k-means algorithm, which showed the best performance (silhouette score = 0.32, CH score = 91.67) among the clustering methods. Perfectionism and procrastination were significant factors in discretizing the groups. SDA+ subgroups were integrated because only 25 people belonged to this group, and they need professional help rather than self-care. Mental status and treatment recommendations were determined for each group, and group names were assigned to represent their features. The developed feedback was assessed to improve mental health literacy (MHL) through integrative and understandable explanations of multidimensional mental health. Moreover, it appeared that a sense of belonging was induced to reduce reluctance to face the feedback.

conclusionsThis study suggests group-tailored feedback using cluster analysis, which identifies groups of university students by integrating multidimensions of mental health. These methods can help students increase their interest in mental health and improve MHL to enable timely help.

Indexed as

Mental HealthStudentsCluster AnalysisCross-Sectional StudiesFeedbackHumansUniversitieseHealthMachine learningMental health promotionOnline screeningPrimary care

Identifiers

PMID35172741
PMCPMC8790855

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.