Playback Theatre Program for Adolescents and Youth
ConditionDepresssion
Trial statusRecruiting
Trial phaseNot applicable
Trial typeInterventional
Biological sexAll
Age13-24
SponsorCity University of Hong Kong
About this trial
The research aims to investigate the effectiveness of playback theatre program on improving mental health for adolescents and youth.
This study adopts a multicentre randomized control trial two arms research design. A randomised controlled trial will compare a typical 7-session therapeutic song-writing program with a waitlist-control group to determine whether the 7-session playback theatre program can produce better outcomes for young people with depressive symptoms, including improvement in depressive symptoms, self-stigma, self-esteem, sense of hope and social support at post-intervention. The 7-session playback theatre program will be delivered by trained and experienced social workers and helping professionals who are familiar with music therapy. A research staff, who does not involve in the group allocation and delivery of group intervention, conduct the intervention outcomes assessment of the participants before and after the intervention. Standardized assessment tools are used to assess the intervention outcomes. The ethical considerations of this study were reviewed and approved by the Human and Artefacts Ethics Sub-Committee of the City University of Hong Kong in 2026.
Eligibility criteria
This trial accepts healthy volunteersQualifiers
aged between 13 to 24 years;
having mild to moderate depression and/or anxiety as assessed using a standardized assessment tool, i.e. Chinese Depression Anxiety Stress Scale-Youth (DASS-Y) with a DASS-Y Depression score between 5 and 12;
service users of The Salvation Army social service unit; and
giving informed consent to this research work. For those aged below 18, parental consent will be obtained.
Disqualifiers
Having severe depression (i.e. a DASS-Y Depression score ≥ 13);
Having severe anxiety (i.e. a DASS-Y Anxiety score ≥ 8); and
Having suicidal risk
Trial design
Design model
Parallel
Treatments tested in this trial
Playback theatre program
BehavioralThe playback theatre program consists of 7 sessions. One session will be conducted per week, with each session lasting for about 90 minutes. A social worker and a helping professional who is familiar with music therapy will be recruited to run the playback theatre program at a collaborative social service centre and school. A standardized program manual is designed by the research team. The social worker and a counsellor who run the playback theatre program will receive training and supervision on conducting the playback theatre program by the research team
Waitlist control group
BehavioralWaitlist control group will receive will receive treatment as usual provided by the collaborative centres and schools, including recreational activities and interest classes, at the initial stage and will receive the same playback theatre program at a later stage
Treatment groups
120 Participants
are divided into 2 treatment groupsGroup A: Intervention groupActive comparator 1 intervention
Group B: Waitlist ControlOther 1 intervention
Trial outcomes
Primary outcomes
1
The Chinese Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS-Y)
The Chinese Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS) DASS is a 21-item scale to assesses participants' self-reported depression, anxiety, and stress with good validity and reliability (Cronbach's α = 0.80 for the DASS Anxiety subscale, 0.83 for the DASS Depression subscale, 0.82 for the DASS Stress subscale, and 0.92 for the DASS total scale). Each item (e.g. I felt down-hearted and blue) is scored from 0 (did not apply to me at all) to 3 (applied to me very much or most of the time). The scores are summed over the items with higher scores indicating a higher severity of symptoms
Time frame
It will be used before and after the intervention (over 7-weeks)Secondary outcomes
1
The Chinese Internalised Stigma of Mental Illness (ISMI)
The Chinese Internalised Stigma of Mental Illness (ISMI) is a 10 -item self-reported scale to measure changes in self-stigma in four dimensions, i.e. shame/alienation (ISMI-SH), stereotype endorsement (ISMI-SE), perceived discrimination (ISMI-PD) and social withdrawal (IMIS-SW), with good validity and reliability (Cronbach's α = 0.93; 0.85; 0.75; 0.84 and for ISMI total scale, ISMI-SH, ISMI-SE, ISMI-PD, ISMI-SW). Each item (e.g. People discriminate against me because I have a mental illness) is rated with a score on a 4-point scale which ranges from "1" (strongly agree) to "4" (strongly disagree). Scores are averaged over the items with higher scores indicating greater self-stigma
Time frame
It will be used before and after the intervention (over 7-weeks)2
The Chinese Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES)
The Chinese Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES) is a 10-item scale to assess participants' self-reported self-esteem in two dimensions, i.e. self-worth (RSES-SW) and self-depreciation (RSES-SD) with good validity and reliability (Cronbach's α = 0.63; 0.74, and 0.81 for RSES, RESE-SW, and RSES-SD). Each item (e.g. I feel that I have a number of good qualities) is rated on a 4-point scale with scores ranging from "1" (strongly agree) to "4" (strongly disagree). The scores are summed over the items with higher scores indicating better self-esteem.
Time frame
It will be used before and after the intervention (over 7-weeks)3
The Chinese Hope Scale (HOPE)
The Chinese Hope Scale (HOPE) is a 12-item scale to assess participants' self-reported hope in two dimensions, i.e., agency (i.e., goal-directed energy) and pathways (i.e., planning to accomplish goals) with good validity and reliability (Cronbach's α = 0.81; 0.70 and 0.76 for the Hope total scale, agency subscale and pathway subscale). Each item (e.g. I can think of many ways to get out of a jam) is answered using an 8-point scale ranging from "1" (definitely false) to "4" (definitely true). The scores are summed over the items, so that higher scores indicate a higher level of hope.
Time frame
It will be used before and after the intervention (over 7-weeks)4
The Chinese Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS)
The Chinese Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS) is a 12-item scale to assess participants' self-reported hope in three dimensions, i.e., family, friends, and significant others with good validity and reliability (Cronbach's α = 0.91, 0.77, 0.88, and 0.88 for the MSPSS total scale, family, friends, and significant others subscale). Each item (e.g. There is a special person with whom I can share joys and sorrows) is answered using an 7-point scale ranging from "1" (strongly disagree) to "7" (strongly agree). The scores are summed over the items, so that higher scores indicate greater social support
Time frame
It will be used before and after the intervention (over 7-weeks)Sponsors and contacts
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City University of Hong Kong
Lead sponsor
The Salvation Army, Hong Kong and Macau Command
Collaborator
Source ClinicalTrials.gov