Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42686878›Full record

Trial reportScientific reports2026

Efficacy of a self-guided online resilience intervention for improving mental health among university students: A randomized controlled trial.

Sonja Bartelt, Tabea Werner, Lisa von Boros, Sarah K Schäfer, Friederike Koehler, Benedikt E Wirth, Klaus Lieb, Oliver Tüscher, Michèle Wessa

Abstract readRandomized Controlled Trial
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report in Scientific reports, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing 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

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

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

9 authors.

Sonja BarteltInstitute of Psychology, Johannes Gutenberg University, Mainz, Germany.ORCID 0009-0001-9882-6219
Tabea WernerInstitute of Psychology, Johannes Gutenberg University, Mainz, Germany.ORCID 0009-0001-0935-3545
Lisa von BorosLeibniz Institute for Resilience Research (LIR), Mainz, Germany.ORCID 0000-0002-2261-9213
Sarah K SchäferLeibniz Institute for Resilience Research (LIR), Mainz, Germany.ORCID 0000-0001-9885-3252
Friederike KoehlerDepartment of Music, Art and Culture Studies, University of Jyväskylä, Centre of Excellence in Music, Mind, Body and Brain, Jyväskylä, Finland.ORCID 0000-0002-0877-7100
Benedikt E WirthGerman Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI), Department of Cognitive Assistants, Saarbrücken, Germany.ORCID 0000-0001-8039-7316
Klaus LiebLeibniz Institute for Resilience Research (LIR), Mainz, Germany.ORCID 0000-0002-9609-4261
Oliver TüscherLeibniz Institute for Resilience Research (LIR), Mainz, Germany.ORCID 0000-0002-4023-5301
Michèle WessaDepartment of Neuropsychology and Resilience Research, Central Institute of Mental Health, Mannheim, Germany. michele.wessa@zi-mannheim.de.ORCID 0000-0002-3216-7214

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Epidemiological data indicates that university students are an at-risk population for the development of mental disorders. Online interventions have been proposed as promising tools for reducing barriers to treatment and establishing easily accessible health-care services promoting mental health and resilience. This study investigated the efficacy of a Learning Management System (LMS)-based self-guided online resilience intervention. 216 university students took part in a randomized controlled trial with an intervention and a waitlist control group and three measurement points (pre, post and follow-up). We conducted per-protocol (PP) and intention-to-treat (ITT) analyses with mental distress as primary outcome, and self-reported resilience and resilience factors as secondary outcomes. Further, attitudes towards online interventions, adherence, satisfaction and possible negative effects were explored. Satisfaction with the intervention was high and PP analyses (n = 150) revealed significant improvements in mental distress and self-compassion at post-test and acceptance at follow-up. No favourable effects were found for self-reported resilience and resilience factors. Adherence was low and ITT analyses revealed no significant effects. Overall, the study provides preliminary evidence for the LMS-based self-guided online intervention as a potentially valuable tool for university mental health services under optimal adherence conditions. Further research into determinants of adherence is needed to improve intervention reach.

Indexed as

Internet-Based InterventionMental DisordersMental HealthResilience, PsychologicalStudentsAdolescentAdultFemaleHumansMaleUniversitiesYoung AdultLearning Management SystemMental healthOnline interventionsPrimary preventionUniversity students

Identifiers

PMID42686878
PMCPMC13538386

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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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.