Our research and interaction work has four main goals:
1. To study and adapt evidence-based mental health interventions specifically targeted for young people in Finland.
Our research, co-creation, development, and adaptation work in this area focus on four interventions:
- IPC-A for mild to moderate depression in school or primary healthcare setting,
- Groups for health (G4H), a group intervention to promote social connectedness and to decrease the risk for loneliness at the educational setting,
- developmentally informed group cognitive behavioral therapy for social anxiety (DOCT-SAD) for the school setting, and
- a compassion-focused intervention in virtual reality (VR-CFT) for the young in the reform schools or correctional settings.
2. To conduct critical evaluation of the implementation of the IPC-A and to provide structured tools for supporting the implementation of interventions.
While the ongoing national program has provided resources for the training of professionals in IPC-A and some resources for dissemination and implementation, the implementation is done without inclusion of young people and a structured implementation plan, including critical follow-up. This consortium studies the process through which IPC-A was adopted and evaluate the feasibility and cost-effectiveness of IPC-A in real-life settings across regions and in subgroups of youth.
We observe the national program to increase knowledge about factors facilitating and delaying implementation, including interaction strategies and tools for follow-up. We evaluate factors affecting feasibility of and motivation for IPC-A vs other treatment options based on comments from youth and professionals.
3. To develop functional operating models that confirm equal access to and availability of EB interventions with low threshold.
We search for best practices to integrate EB interventions into every-day settings, to complement EB interventions with e-Mental Health applications for increased accessibility, and to youth-friendly detection of need for treatment and provision of support.
4. To study and promote agency of young people to understand and influence factors that affect motivation for and adherence to psychosocial interventions.
We include young people and professionals as participants in the co-design and evaluation process and describe the path from co-design to success of the intervention implementation. Furthermore, we examine factors improving motivation for and adherence to interventions, and evaluate interventions and their provision for factors affecting experienced cultural sensitivity and equality issues.