Parents play an important role in supporting their children's mental health but often feel unsure how to respond to emotional or mental health difficulties. To address this need, the PsyGes project developed the Youngsters Upbringing Mental Health Information and Counselling App (YOUCA), a smartphone app that provides parents with information, practical guidance, daily tips, communication strategies, a mental health glossary, and a directory of support services.
This study aims to evaluate the usability and potential effectiveness of YOUCA in improving parenting skills and parental self-efficacy (confidence in supporting a child). In this mixed-methods randomized waitlist-controlled pilot study, approximately 25 parents of children with mental health difficulties will participate. Participants will use the app over a four-week period and complete questionnaires before and after use. App usability and satisfaction will also be assessed. Interviews with parents and a focus group with psychosocial experts will provide additional feedback to support further app development and future larger-scale evaluation.
Adult (psychological) parents (Age > 18 years) of children/adolescents aged 10-17
AND previously/currently concerned about their child's mental health & therefore seeking information/support
AND willingness to comply with all study related procedures and provide informed consent
AND owning a smartphone and willing to use it for installing and testing the YOUCA App within the intervention phase
Lack of consent capacity in parents or acute crisis of the participants. No external expert assessment is conducted. An acute crisis is defined as screened by PHQ-4 score rated from 9 to 12 (Kroenke et al. 2009).
Insufficient knowledge of German for questionnaire completion, app use and participation in the interview
Active work in the field of psychosocial and mental health in the last three years
AND working with children / adolescents between age 10 - 17 in the field of psychosocial and mental health
Parallel
App YOUCA (prototype)
DeviceYoungsters Upbringing Mental Health Counseling App (YOUCA) to provide parents and caregivers with accessible professional guidance. YOUCA aims to strengthen parenting skills, to empower parents by helping them with strategies to support their children, particularly in times of emotional difficulty and provide the opportunity to seek professional help.
Parenting to Reduce Adolescent Depression and Anxiety Scale Total Score
The Parenting to Reduce Adolescent Depression and Anxiety Scale Scale: Mostly 4-point Likert scales across 79 items, assessing either the frequency of a behavior (Never to Often) or the likelihood of a reaction in hypothetical scenarios (Very unlikely to Very likely). Calculation/Assessment: Criterion-referenced scoring. Responses are dichotomized based on clinical guidelines: * 1 point: Concordant with guidelines. * 0 points: Non-concordant with guidelines. * Points are summed up to calculate the total or subscale scores. Unit of measurement: Points (0-79). A higher score indicates greater adherence to preventive parenting guidelines.
Parenting to Reduce Adolescent Depression and Anxiety Scale Subscales
9 validated subscales of the Parenting to Reduce Adolescent Depression and Anxiety Scale allowing for contextualization of findings. Responses are dichotomized based on clinical guidelines: • 1 point: Concordant with guidelines. • 0 points: Non-concordant with guidelines. • Points are summed up to calculate the subscale scores. A higher score indicates greater adherence to preventive parenting guidelines. 1. Parent-Child Relationship (8 items; score range: 0 to 8) 2. Involvement (8 items; score range: 0 to 8) 3. Relationships with Others (6 items; score range: 0 to 6) 4. Family Rules (9 items; score range: 0 to 9) 5. Home Environment (8 items; score range: 0 to 8) 6. Health Habits ((12 items; score range: 0 to 12) 7. Dealing with Problems (10 items; score range: 0 to 10) 8. Coping with Anxiety (9 items; score range: 0 to 9) 8\. Professional Help-Seeking (9 items; score range: 0 to 9)
Me as a Parent Scale
The Me as a Parent Scale is a 16-item parent-report questionnaire designed to measure parenting self-regulation. It evaluates parents' beliefs about their ability to effectively manage parenting challenges and comprises four subscales: Self-Efficacy (confidence in parenting abilities), Personal Agency (perceived influence over parenting outcomes), Self-Management (ability to regulate behavior and remain goal-directed in the parenting role), and Self-Sufficiency (perceived ability to independently solve parenting problems). Higher scores reflect greater parenting self-efficacy and self-regulatory capacity. Items are rated on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from \[1\] Strongly disagree to \[5\] Points are summed to a total score ranging from 16 to 80 and the subscales score from 4 to 20 each with the reverse-coded items 1, 4, 9, and 16, with higher scores indicating more adaptive parenting self-regulation beliefs.
Post-Study System Usability Questionnaire
The Post-Study System Usability Questionnaire includes the subscales System Usefulness (items 1-8), Information Quality (items 9-15), and Interface Quality (items 16-18). Example items include "Overall, I am satisfied with how easy it is to use this system" and "The information provided by the system is clear." Items are scored on a 7-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (Strongly Disagree) to 7 (Strongly Agree). Subscale scores range from 1 to 7, calculated as the average of the item responses for that subscale, with higher scores indicating a better outcome (higher overall system usability and user satisfaction).
Qualitative data from participants' interviews
Qualitative content analysis of participant interviews conducted after completion of app use
Qualitative data from experts' focus group
Qualitative content analysis of expert focus groups. These sessions specifically focus on evaluating the application's usability, gathering the experts' assessment of its practical usefulness for parents, and exploring the anticipated parental acceptance of the intervention, own acceptance of the intervention.
App-Usage Diary
Usage diary through intervention period to capture adherence, patterns of app use, user experiences and acceptance, perceived usefulness of the content, and any usability issues encountered during the study.
Click on the lead sponsor to view all of their trials.
Hochschule Campus Wien (University of Applied Sciences Campus Vienna)
Lead sponsor
NOUS Wissensmanagement FlexCo
Collaborator
Empowermente, Verein für psychische Gesundheit von Jugendlichen und jungen Erwachsenen
Collaborator
Psychotherapie Mantl
Collaborator
