ReviewInternet interventions2022
Effects of self-guided stress management interventions in college students: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
Review in Internet interventions, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to 2 registered trials, which are not on this map. Cited by 43 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled 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.
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.
Efficacy of Chatbot-based Internet Intervention for Stress Among University Students: A Randomized Controlled Trial
Evaluating Knowledge Mobilization Sustainability Approaches for Stress Management in University Students
Who cites it
43 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 93 citations in OpenAlex.
- The Emerging Roles of AI in Self-Directed Stress Management: Systematic Review.Journal of medical Internet research · 2026Pooled it
- Mental health in university students: an umbrella review grading the evidence for psychosocial interventions.BMJ mental health · 2026Pooled it
- Stress management interventions for university students in low-and middle-income countries: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Frontiers in digital health · 2025Pooled it
- Meta-Analysis of Psychological Interventions for Reducing Stress, Anxiety, and Depression among University Students during the COVID-19 Pandemic.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Pooled it
- Efficacy of a self-guided online resilience intervention for improving mental health among university students: A randomized controlled trial.Scientific reports · 2026Trial
- Evaluation of the effectiveness of a 7-week minimal guided and unguided cognitive behavioral therapy-based stress-management APP for students.BMC public health · 2025Trial
- A quasiexperimental study of assessing the impact of stress management program on health science students at Kuwait University.Scientific reports · 2025Trial
- The effect of probiotic supplementation on perceived stress and bowel function in healthy young adults: evidence from a randomized controlled trial in Makkah.Frontiers in nutrition · 2025Trial
- Effects of a Seven-Week App-Based Passive Psychoeducation Program on Perceived Stress in Nursing Students-A Randomized Controlled Parallel-Group Study.Nursing reports (Pavia, Italy) · 2026Article
- Gentle Mind-A Podcast on Self-Compassion and Character Strengths to Enhance Well-Being in University Students: A Controlled Feasibility Study.Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Perceived Causes of Sleep Problems in Higher Education Students: An Exploratory Study.Psychological reports · 2026Article
- The effect of outdoor sports education on university students' employment anxiety: the mediating role of fear of failure and self-management.BMC psychology · 2026Article
- Dynamic bidirectional relationships between perceived stress and emotion regulation in emergency medical service clinicians.Npj mental health research · 2026Article
- Unguided self-help to bridge waiting time for face-to-face therapy in a university student mental health service: interrupted time series analysis.BJPsych open · 2025Article
- Feasibility of Modified Mindfulness Training Program for Antenatal Depression and Perceived Stress Among Expectant Mothers with Male Child Preference.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Association of chronic stress during studies with depressive symptoms 10 years later.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Managing Stress and Somatization Symptoms Among Students in Demanding Academic Healthcare Environments.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- Symptoms of Anxiety and Depression in Italian Nursing Students: Prevalence and Predictors.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- Mental health apps within the healthcare system: associations with stigma and mental health literacy.Archives of public health = Archives belges de sante publique · 2024Article
- Preventive Effect of a 7-Week App-Based Passive Psychoeducational Stress Management Program on Students.Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
8 authors at 4 institutions in 4 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundCollege students face several sources of stress. Self-guided stress management interventions offer an excellent opportunity for scaling up evidence-based interventions for self-management of these stresses. However, little is known about the overall effects of these interventions. Increasing this understanding is essential because self-guided stress management interventions might be a cost-effective and acceptable way of providing help to this important segment of the population during a critical life course stage.
methodsWe carried out a systematic literature search of bibliographical databases (PubMed, PsycINFO, Embase, and Cochrane Library) for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of self-guided stress management interventions published up through April 2020. We conducted two separate meta-analyses for perceived stress, depression, and anxiety. The first included interventions for general college student samples. The second included studies for students with high levels of perceived stress.
resultsThe first meta-analysis included 26 studies with 29 intervention-control comparisons based on a total of 4468 students. The pooled effect size was small but statistically significant ( DISCUSSION: Our results suggest that self-guided stress management programs may be effective when compared to control conditions, but with small average effects. These programs might be a useful element of a multi-component intervention system. Given the psychological barriers to treatment that exist among many college students, self-help interventions might be a good first step in facilitating subsequent help-seeking among students reluctant to engage in other types of treatment. More studies should be conducted to investigate these interventions, sample specifications, mediating effects, and individual-level heterogeneity of effects.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
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.