MISAPSY: Childhood Maltreatment, Food Insecurity, Psychological Distress and Professional Integration Among Socioeconomically Disadvantaged Young Adults

NCT07427524 | Not Yet Recruiting

• 1 other identifier: 2025-A01928-41
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 70
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 6

Brief Summary

The MISAPSY study (Childhood Maltreatment, Food Insecurity, Psychological Distress and Professional Integration Among Socioeconomically Disadvantaged Young Adults) aims to model the complex interrelations between child maltreatment, trauma exposure, food insecurity, and psychological distress among precarious young adults enrolled in French youth employment and social integration services (Mission Locale). Adopting a methodology structured around three complementary components, this study consists of: (1) a cross-sectional survey to identify key associations ; (2) a qualitative study based on semi-structured interviews exploring psychologists' subjective experiences, and (3) a longitudinal comparative interventional study involving two different support programs to assess and compare the impact of these interventions on participants' food insecurity and psychological well-being. Using a multi-phase design, MISAPSY seeks to move beyond linear risk-factor models by adopting a systemic and network-based approach to mental health and social vulnerability. The study integrates quantitative analyses, including network analyses, qualitative exploration of professional practices, and comparative longitudinal intervention to inform more holistic, equitable, and transferable models of care for vulnerable young adults.

Conditions

Trauma and Stress-related Disorders; Food Insecurity; Child Maltreatment; Psychological Distress; Depression Symptoms; Anxiety Symptoms

Keywords

Food Insecurity; Mental health; young adults; trauma; adverse childhood experience; psychological distress; precarity; mixed-methods

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Change in Food Insecurity Severity

  Food insecurity assessed using the Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES), an 8-item standardized questionnaire. The total raw score ranges from 0 to 8, with higher scores indicating greater food insecurity severity. Changes in food insecurity severity over time will be compared between the two intervention arms to evaluate the added impact of psychological support alongside food assistance. The primary outcome is the change in FIES total score from baseline to 12 months (4 assessments), comparing the two intervention arms.

  T0: Baseline; T1: 3 months after baseline; T2: 6 months after baseline (end of the psychological follow-up); and T3: 12 months after baseline (end of the study)

Secondary Outcomes (3)

• Change in Anxiety Symptoms

  T0: Baseline; T1: 3 months after baseline; T2: 6 months after baseline (end of the psychological follow-up), and T3: 12 months (end of the study)

• Change in Depressive Symptoms

  T0: Baseline; T1: 3 months after baseline; T2: 6 months after baseline (end of the psychological follow-up); and T3: 12 months after baseline (end of the study).

• Change in Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Symptoms

  T0: Baseline; T1: 3 months after baseline; T2: 6 months after baseline (end of the psychological follow-up); and T3: 12 months after baseline (end of the study).

Other Outcomes (1)

• Participants' subjective experience

  3 months after baseline; 6 months after baseline; 12 months after baseline (end of the study)

Study Arms (2)

Food Assistance Only (Control Group)

ACTIVE COMPARATOR

Participants in this arm receive weekly food assistance for a duration of 12 months. The food support is intended to address food insecurity. Food distribution takes place within the usual Mission Locale setting.

Other: Food Assistance

Food Assistance Plus Psychological Support (Experimental Group)

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants in this arm receive weekly food assistance for 12 months combined with twice-monthly psychological follow-up provided over a 6-month period. The psychological support aims to address psychological distress and trauma-related difficulties in addition to food insecurity. Participants remain in this intervention arm throughout the study, with repeated assessments conducted over a 12-month follow-up period. Psychological support is provided by trained, psychodynamic psychologists who are partners of the Mission Locale. Appointments are held at the young adult's usual Mission Locale location.

Other: Food Assistance; Behavioral: Psychological Follow-Up

Interventions

Food Assistance OTHER

Weekly food assistance provided to participants for a duration of 12 months, aimed at reducing food insecurity.

Food Assistance Only (Control Group); Food Assistance Plus Psychological Support (Experimental Group)

Psychological Follow-Up BEHAVIORAL

Twice-monthly psychological follow-up sessions provided over a 6-month period, delivered by trained psychodynamic psychologists, aiming to support psychological well-being and address trauma-related psychological distress.

Food Assistance Plus Psychological Support (Experimental Group)

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years - 25 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: No
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64)

You may qualify if:

• Be aged 18 to 25 years
• Be supported by a Mission Locale in Paris as part of a social and/or professional integration program
• Voluntarily participate in the study after receiving clear information and signing an informed consent form
• Experiencing severe food insecurity (positive response to item 8 of the FIES)
• Experiencing significant psychological distress, defined by: PHQ-9 score \> 15; GAD-7 score \> 10
• Have been exposed to at least one adverse childhood experience, identified via the CTQ-SF (Childhood Trauma Questionnaire - Short Form).

You may not qualify if:

• Being unable to provide informed consent due to impaired comprehension or communication skills
• Currently receiving psychiatric care for an acute or chronic mental illness requiring regular specialized treatment
• Experiencing a social or medical emergency incompatible with the study (e.g., unstable emergency housing, acute suicidal crisis, ongoing hospitalization)
• Being incarcerated, under guardianship or curatorship without specific legal authorization to participate in research
• Having previously participated in a similar study or currently being engaged in a structured psychological intervention protocol
• Having insufficient command of the French language, preventing comprehension of instructions, questionnaires, or interviews.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• University of Lorraine: lead

Study Sites (6)

Mission Locale site Centre

Paris, 75011, France

Location

Mission Locale site Soleil

Paris, 75013, France

Location

Mission Locale site Avenir

Paris, 75014, France

Location

Mission Locale site Milord

Paris, 75018, France

Location

Mission Locale site Est

Paris, 75019, France

Location

Mission Locale site Pyrénées

Paris, 75020, France

Location

Related Publications (4)

• Essadek A, Guenoun T, Gressier F, Najdini M, Cappelletti M, Frigaux A, Melchior M, Musso M, Robin M. Post-pandemic changes in anxiety and depression symptom networks among socioeconomically disadvantaged young Adults: A repeated cross-sectional study. SSM Popul Health. 2025 Aug 16;31:101854. doi: 10.1016/j.ssmph.2025.101854. eCollection 2025 Sep.

  PMID: 40893605 BACKGROUND

• Essadek A, Shadili G, Bergami Goulart Barbosa P, Assous A, Widart F, Payan S, Rabeyron T, Corruble E, Falissard B, Gressier F. Precarious Young Adults' Mental Health during the Pandemic: The Major Impact of Food Insecurity Independently of COVID-19 Diagnosis. Nutrients. 2023 Jul 24;15(14):3260. doi: 10.3390/nu15143260.

  PMID: 37513678 BACKGROUND

• Pourmotabbed A, Moradi S, Babaei A, Ghavami A, Mohammadi H, Jalili C, Symonds ME, Miraghajani M. Food insecurity and mental health: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Public Health Nutr. 2020 Jul;23(10):1778-1790. doi: 10.1017/S136898001900435X. Epub 2020 Mar 16.

  PMID: 32174292 BACKGROUND

• Guedeney A, Benamozig G, El Asmar K, Viaux Savelon S. Les jeunes des Missions locales de Paris et le risque suicidaire. Résultats préliminaires d'un essai contrôlé de proposition de suivi psychothérapeutique préventif du suicide (MLADO). Bulletin de l'Académie Nationale de Médecine. 1 juin 2023;207(6):779 86.

  BACKGROUND

Related Links

• This activity report provides institutional background information on the Mission Locale de Paris and the beginnings of the MISAPSY project

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Trauma and Stressor Related Disorders; Depression; Anxiety Disorders; Psychological Well-Being; Wounds and Injuries

Interventions

Food Assistance

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Mental Disorders; Behavioral Symptoms; Behavior; Personal Satisfaction

Intervention Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Public Assistance; Financing, Government; Financing, Organized; Economics; Health Care Economics and Organizations

Study Officials

• Aziz Essadek, PhD

  Université de Paris Cité

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Central Study Contacts

Aziz ESSADEK, PhD

CONTACT

+33667344173; aziz.essadek@u-paris.fr

Maud Cappelletti, PhD student

CONTACT

maud.cappelletti@univ-lorraine.fr

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: SINGLE
• Who Masked: OUTCOMES ASSESSOR
• Purpose: SUPPORTIVE CARE
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Model Details: This study uses a parallel-group interventional design in which participants are randomized (1:1) using a simple randomization sequence. Outcome assessors are blinded to group assignment. The investigator who carries out the randomization procedure will be responsible for the assessments (questionnaires and semi-structured interviews). The control group receives weekly food assistance for 12 months, while the experimental group receives the same food assistance combined with twice-monthly psychological sessions for 6 months. Participants remain in their assigned group throughout the study, with repeated assessments conducted at predefined time points to evaluate changes in food insecurity and psychological well-being (T0: baseline; T1: 3 months after baseline; T2: 6 months after baseline; T3: 12 months after baseline, end of the study). The psychologists who carry out the follow-ups are partners of the Mission Locale but are not part of the research team.

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: February 10, 2026
• First Posted: February 23, 2026
• Study Start: July 1, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): June 1, 2027
• Study Completion (Estimated): June 1, 2027
• Last Updated: May 5, 2026

Record last verified: 2026-02

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

FR (6)