Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40533074›Full record

ArticleJMIR mental health2025

Investigating Project Care UK, a Web-Based Self-Help Single-Session Intervention for Youth Mental Health: Program Evaluation.

Maria Elizabeth Loades, Grace Perry, Noah Marshall

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in JMIR mental health, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
–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

3 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Digital media balance and mental health: effects of a school-based program.Child and adolescent psychiatry and mental health · 2026
    Article
  3. 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

3 authors.

Maria Elizabeth LoadesDepartment of Psychology, University of Bath, Bath, United Kingdom.ORCID 0000-0002-0839-3190
Grace Perry *Department of Psychology, University of Bath, Bath, United Kingdom.ORCID 0009-0008-6405-7352
Noah Marshall *Department of Psychology, University of Bath, Bath, United Kingdom.ORCID 0009-0003-3625-3608

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundPsychological distress becomes more common during adolescence, yet many young people struggle to access clinic-based mental health care. Digital, self-help single-session interventions (SSIs) could extend current provision and overcome barriers to help seeking.

objectiveThis study aims to pilot Project Care UK, a self-compassion-focused SSI, to examine its feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy for UK adolescents aged between 13 and 18 years.

methodsWe used a single-arm, within-subjects pre-post intervention program evaluation. Consenting participants completed a demographic survey and clinical measures at baseline. Self-assessments of hope, hopelessness, negative beliefs about self-compassion, and help seeking were measured immediately before and after the intervention. Acceptability and feasibility were measured after the intervention using the Program Feedback Scale and study completion metrics. Preliminary efficacy was evaluated using linear mixed-effects models. The study protocol was preregistered on the Open Science Framework before publication.

resultsOf the 813 individuals who gave consent for the study, 714 (87.8%) initiated the preintervention assessment survey, 610 (75%) initiated the intervention, 341 (41.9%) initiated the Program Feedback Scale, and 329 (40.5%) initiated the postintervention assessment survey. The sample consisted of adolescents (mean age 15.38, SD 1.58 y) who were predominantly assigned female sex at birth, were White, and were nonheterosexual. Intervention completers widely endorsed the intervention as acceptable. Significant, favorable pre- and postintervention changes were observed across all outcome measures, including increased hope (Cohen d=0.72, P<.001), decreased hopelessness (Cohen d=-0.73, P<.001), and reduced negative beliefs about self-compassion (Cohen d=-0.64, P<.001). No significant changes were observed for help-seeking intentions.

conclusionsAlthough not all participants completed the study, our findings show that recruiting adolescents in the United Kingdom is feasible; completers indicated that the intervention was acceptable, and they showed improvements in the proximal outcomes of hope, hopelessness, and beliefs about self-compassion. More extensive follow-up over time and comparator intervention analyses would allow more robust conclusions to be drawn.

Indexed as

Internet-Based InterventionProgram EvaluationSelf CareAdolescentFeasibility StudiesFemaleHumansMalePatient Acceptance of Health CarePilot ProjectsUnited Kingdomadolescent mental healthdepressiondigital mental health interventionearly helpscalable interventionssingle-session intervention

Identifiers

PMID40533074
PMCPMC12223457

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.