A Single-Arm Trial of a Web-Based Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Mental Health Promotion Intervention for University Students

NCT07701330 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: HE001551
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 626
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

University students experience high rates of psychological distress and frequently encounter barriers to accessing professional mental health support. Web-based interventions may provide a scalable and accessible approach for promoting mental health and well-being in university settings. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) is a transdiagnostic behavioural intervention that aims to increase psychological flexibility and has demonstrated beneficial effects on a range of psychological and academic outcomes among university students. YOLO (You Only Live Once) is a four-week, self-guided, web-based ACT mental health promotion program developed for university students. Previous pilot and randomized controlled evaluations of YOLO demonstrated significant improvements in psychological well-being, distress, and academic functioning. Following these encouraging findings, YOLO was integrated into the University of Queensland's suite of digital well-being resources for students, and the present study was designed to evaluate its university-wide implementation using a prospective single-arm interventional approach. The study aims to evaluate the preliminary effectiveness of the YOLO program in improving psychological distress, well-being, life satisfaction, academic performance, and psychological flexibility/inflexibility processes. In addition, the study will examine the feasibility, acceptability, usability, and engagement associated with participation in the intervention and investigate whether changes in psychological flexibility/inflexibility processes are associated with improvements in mental health and well-being outcomes. Findings from this study are expected to inform the future implementation and dissemination of web-based ACT interventions within university settings.

Conditions

Psychological Distress; Academic Stress

Keywords

Student mental health; university students; digital mental health; Acceptance and Commitment Therapy; psychological flexibility; mental health promotion

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (4)

• Distress

  The Depression Anxiety and Stress Scales 21 (DASS-21) is a 21-item self-report measure assessing three core symptom dimensions of negative emotional states: depression, anxiety, and stress. Each item is rated on a 4-point scale from 0 ("Did not apply to me at all") to 3 ("Applied to me very much, or most of the time"), referring to the past week. Subscale and total scores are calculated by summing the relevant items. Higher scores indicate greater severity of depression, anxiety, and stress symptoms.

  T1 (baseline); T2 (post-intervention, 4 weeks); T3 (follow-ups, 3 months)

• Well-being

  The Mental Health Continuum Short Form (MHC-SF) is a 14-item measure assessing positive mental health across three dimensions: emotional, social, and psychological well-being. Each item is rated on a 6-point frequency scale from 0 ("Never") to 5 ("Every day"), referring to the past month. Total and subscale scores are calculated by summing or averaging the relevant items. Higher scores indicate greater well-being.

  T1 (baseline); T2 (post-intervention, 4 weeks); T3 (follow-ups, 3 months)

• Academic performance

  This self-report questionnaire assesses students perceived academic functioning. Items are rated on a 10-point scale from 1 ("Performing at your worst") to 10 ("Performing at your best"), with an additional "Not applicable" option where relevant. Scores are calculated by averaging the valid items. Higher scores indicate better perceived academic performance and academic functioning. The total score reflects the mean level of perceived academic performance across the retained academic functioning items.

  T1 (baseline); T2 (post-intervention, 4 weeks); T3 (follow-ups, 3 months)

• Life satisfaction

  The Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS) is a 5-item measure assessing global cognitive judgements of satisfaction with one's life. Each item is rated on a 7-point scale from 1 ("Strongly disagree") to 7 ("Strongly agree"). Total scores are calculated by summing the 5 items, with higher scores indicating greater life satisfaction.

  T1 (baseline); T2 (post-intervention, 4 weeks); T3 (follow-ups, 3 months)

Secondary Outcomes (5)

• Experiential Avoidance

  T1 (baseline); T2 (post-intervention, 4 weeks); T3 (follow-ups, 3 months)

• Cognitive fusion

  T1 (baseline); T2 (post-intervention, 4 weeks); T3 (follow-ups, 3 months)

• Valued living

  T1 (baseline); T2 (post-intervention, 4 weeks); T3 (follow-ups, 3 months)

• Education values

  T1 (baseline); T2 (post-intervention, 4 weeks); T3 (follow-ups, 3 months)

• Present moment awareness

  T1 (baseline); T2 (post-intervention, 4 weeks); T3 (follow-ups, 3 months)

Study Arms (1)

YOLO intervention

EXPERIMENTAL

The study includes two assessment pathways (Full research Arm and Minimal research Arm), but these do not constitute separate intervention arms because all participants will receive immediate access to the web-based YOLO program after providing informed consent. The intervention consists of four online modules, each based on the core principles of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), and participants will be encouraged to complete one module per week. The program is designed to promote psychological flexibility through the following topics: 1. values and committed action; 2. cognitive defusion; 3. acceptance and willingness; 4. mindfulness and the observing self. Each module includes animated presentations, YouTube videos, audio recordings, and experiential exercises grounded in ACT principles. To support engagement, participants will receive automated reminders, one supplementary learning activity per module, module summaries upon completion, and invitations to complete

Behavioral: YOLO intervention: 4-week web-based intervention

Interventions

YOLO intervention: 4-week web-based intervention BEHAVIORAL

The study includes two assessment pathways (Full research Arm and Minimal research Arm), but these do not constitute separate intervention arms because all participants will receive immediate access to the web-based YOLO program after providing informed consent. The intervention consists of four online modules, each based on the core principles of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), and participants will be encouraged to complete one module per week. The program is designed to promote psychological flexibility through the following topics: 1. values and committed action; 2. cognitive defusion; 3. acceptance and willingness; 4. mindfulness and the observing self. Each module includes animated presentations, YouTube videos, audio recordings, and experiential exercises grounded in ACT principles. To support engagement, participants will receive automated reminders, one supplementary learning activity per module, module summaries upon completion, and invitations to complete.

YOLO intervention

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Currently enrolled student at the University of Queensland.
• Aged 18 years or older.
• Sufficient computer and internet literacy;
• Fluent knowledge of the English language.
• Able to access the web-based platform.

You may not qualify if:

• Current high risk of suicide or self-harm;
• Severe cognitive impairment or neurocognitive difficulties that would prevent informed consent, completion of self-report assessments, or meaningful engagement with the self-guided online intervention.
• Current severe psychiatric or medical condition that would make participation inappropriate or unsafe, or that would require more intensive clinical care than can be provided by a self-guided mental health promotion program.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• University of Bologna: collaborator
• The University of Queensland: lead

Study Sites (1)

School of Psychology, University of Qeensland

Saint Lucia, Queensland, 4072, Australia

Location

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: NA
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: PREVENTION
• Intervention Model: SINGLE GROUP
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: PhD

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: July 7, 2026
• First Posted: July 14, 2026
• Study Start: June 25, 2019
• Primary Completion: August 31, 2025
• Study Completion: August 31, 2025
• Last Updated: July 14, 2026

Record last verified: 2026-07

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will share
• Shared Documents: SAP
• Time Frame: Beginning after publication of the main study results.
• Access Criteria: Data will be made available to researchers who provide a methodologically sound proposal and whose proposed use of the data has been approved by the study investigators.

Locations

AU (1)