Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
This pilot study seeks to determine if exposure to the Make the Connection campaign messages developed by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is associated with changes in mental-health related outcomes, specifically: (1) psychosocial determinants that drive help seeking behaviors (knowledge, attitudes and intentions); and (2) perceived barriers to seeking care. Participants are randomly assigned to message exposure or control (no exposure) conditions. Data from this project will inform mental health education and outreach efforts targeted towards Veterans experiencing mental health concerns.
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
| Label | Type | Description | Intervention Names |
|---|---|---|---|
| Exposure to Make the Connection messages | Experimental |
| |
| Active Control group | Active Comparator |
| |
| No exposure control group | No Intervention |
| Name | Type | Description | Arm Group Labels | Other Names |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exposure to Make the Connection messages | Other | Participants are exposed to Make the Connection messages (each approximately 3 minutes in length) weekly for over a four-month study period through the study mobile application. |
| Measure | Description | Time Frame |
|---|---|---|
| change in help seeking behavior | self-report treatment engagement in VA or non-VA services | change from baseline behavior at 16 weeks |
| Measure | Description | Time Frame |
|---|---|---|
| Attitudes towards help seeking | self-reported treatment beliefs and likelihood for help seeking | assessed up to 16 weeks |
| Barriers to care | The 6-item stigma Scale developed by Britt et al. (2000; 2008) to assess stigma of accessing treatment for psychological problems among military personnel is used w/a 5 point likert scale (1=strongly disagree to 5=strongly agree). Logistical barriers to care are also assessed using the 5-item Barriers to Care scale (Hoge et al. 2004) to assess barriers to accessing psychological treatment w/ a 5 point likert scale (1=strongly disagree; 5= strongly agree). Higher values represent a worse outcome (e.g., higher endorsement of stigma). |
| Measure | Description | Time Frame |
|---|---|---|
| change in social support | self-report survey using the multidimensional scale of perceived social support (Zimmet et al. 1990). This is a 12-item scale of perceived social support from family and friends. Each item is scored 1-7 on a likert scale (1=very strongly disagree; 7=very strongly agree) and summed with a possible range of 7 to 84. Higher scores indicate higher awareness/belief of social support. |
Inclusion Criteria:
Veterans of all gender/sex, race/ethnicities that in the past 6 months:
Exclusion Criteria:
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
| Name | Affiliation | Role |
|---|---|---|
| Elizabeth Karras, PhD | Center of Excellence for Suicide Prevention, Canandaigua VA Medical Center; U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs | Principal Investigator |
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
Not provided
| Active Control Group | Other | Participants are exposed to VA news clips/segments (each approximately 3 minutes in length) weekly for over a four-month study period through the study mobile application. |
|
| assessed up to 16 weeks |
| change from baseline behavior at 16 weeks |
| ID | Term |
|---|---|
| D003863 | Depression |
| D011618 | Psychotic Disorders |
| D010554 | Personality Disorders |
| D019966 | Substance-Related Disorders |
| D000066505 | Help-Seeking Behavior |
| ID | Term |
|---|---|
| D001526 | Behavioral Symptoms |
| D001519 | Behavior |
| D019967 | Schizophrenia Spectrum and Other Psychotic Disorders |
| D001523 | Mental Disorders |
| D064419 | Chemically-Induced Disorders |
| D012919 | Social Behavior |
Not provided
Not provided