ROCO - Self-help for People With Psychological Distress Due to the Covid-19 Situation

Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT) to Evaluate the Efficacy of an Internet-based Self-help Program for People With Psychological Distress Due to Covid-19

As part of the ROCO project, the University of Bern is investigating an online self-help program for people who are psychologically distressed due to the situation surrounding Covid-19. The ROCO program offers support in overcoming this psychological distress. ROCO stands for a 3-week online self-help program comprising 6 modules.

The aim of the study is to investigate the efficacy of an online self-help intervention for people with psychological distress due to the situation surrounding Covid-19. All participants will be randomized to one of two groups: The first group receives direct access to the online self-help intervention and the second group is a waiting control group that receives access to the program 3 weeks later. In both conditions additional care or treatment is allowed.

There are 4 assessments, which all take place online: baseline, post assessment (after 3 weeks) and two follow-up assessments (after 6 and 18 weeks). All participants from both groups are asked to fill out all assessments.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Be at least 18 years old
• Give a declaration of consent to participate in the study
• Have access to the internet
• Understand and master the German language to the degree that they understand the contents and instructions of the study
• Exceed a cut-off value of 4 points on the Brief Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9; Löwe, Spitzer, Zipfel, & Herzog, 2002)
• Be able to specify an emergency address in the event of an acute crisis

Exclusion Criteria:

• Suicidal tendencies (SBQ-R Score ≥ 8)
• Existence of a known diagnosis of a psychotic or bipolar disorder