Cultural Adaptation of an Online Parenting Intervention to Reduce the Risk of Depression and Anxiety in Adolescents

NCT07790835 | Not Yet Recruiting DMC

• 1 other identifier: Partners in Parenting_Pakistan
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 1,300
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

Depression and anxiety are common mental health problems among adolescents and can affect their relationships, education, physical health and everyday lives. In Pakistan, many adolescents experience emotional difficulties, but mental health problems are often overlooked. Stigma, limited awareness about mental health and difficulties accessing professional support can prevent young people and families from getting the help they need. Parents play an important role in supporting their adolescents' mental health. The way parents communicate with their children, set family rules, manage conflict, provide emotional support and encourage healthy habits can influence adolescents' wellbeing. However, parenting programmes that help parents reduce the risk of depression and anxiety in adolescents are limited in Pakistan. This study aims to address this gap by adapting and evaluating an online parenting programme called Partners in Parenting (PiP) for families in Pakistan. Hence, the aim is to find out whether the culturally adapted PiP programme can reduce the risk of depression and anxiety among adolescents and improve parenting practices and parent-adolescent relationships. We will also explore whether the programme is acceptable, easy to use and helpful for Pakistani families, and whether it provides good value for the resources required to deliver it. First, we will work with adolescents, parents, grandparents, teachers and health professionals to understand their experiences and views about adolescent mental health and parenting in Pakistan. Their feedback will be used to make PiP culturally appropriate and relevant to Pakistani families. People with lived experience of adolescent mental health difficulties will also be involved throughout the adaptation process. The study will then evaluate the adapted programme with 1,300 parent-adolescent pairs across eight cities in Pakistan: Karachi, Hyderabad, Lahore, Rawalpindi, Multan, Qambar Shahdad Kot, Larkana and Sukkur. Families will be randomly allocated to three groups i.e partners in parenting, Shamiri, and control group. PiP is an online programme designed to help parents develop positive parenting skills and strengthen their relationships with their adolescents. Adolescents participating in the study will receive a four-session programme called Shamiri, which focuses on developing a growth mindset, gratitude and personal values. Process evaluation will explore how the programme is delivered and experienced in real-world settings. This will help us understand whether families engage with and complete the programme, which parts they find useful or difficult, how acceptable and practical the intervention is, and what factors may support or prevent successful implementation. We will gather information from parents, adolescents and those involved in delivering or supporting the programme to understand their experiences and identify ways the programme could be improved and implemented more effectively. The findings could help identify practical and accessible ways to support adolescent mental health in Pakistan. The study will give parents and adolescents an opportunity to contribute to research that aims to improve mental health support for young people in Pakistan.

Conditions

Risk of Depression and Anxiety

Keywords

Adolescents, Parenting, depression, anxiety, Pakistan

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Short Mood and Feelings Questionnaire- SMFQ (Angold et al., 1995)

  The SMFQ, Adolescent-reported, consists of a series of 13 descriptive phrases regarding how the subject has been feeling or acting recently. It is a screening tool for depression in children and young people aged 6 to 19. A total score on the child version of the SMFQ of 8 or more is considered significant.

  Baseline and 3 months

Secondary Outcomes (8)

• Spence Children's Anxiety Scale- (SCAS) Adolescent-report (Spence, 1997):

  Baseline and 3 months Follow up

• Parenting to Reduce Adolescent Depression and Anxiety Scale (PRADAS) (Cardamone-Breen, Jorm, Lawrence, Mackinnon, & Yap, 2017):

  Baseline and 3 months

• The McMaster Family Assessment Device-General Functioning subscale (FAD-GF) (Epstein, Baldwin, & Bishop, 1983):

  Baseline and 3 months

• EuroQol 5 Dimensions (Brooks & Group, 2017)

  Baseline and 3 months

• Client Service Receipt Inventory (CSRI) (Beecham & Knapp, 2001)

  Baselines and 3 months

Study Arms (3)

Partners in Parenting

EXPERIMENTAL

The Partners in Parenting (PiP) intervention is a fully automated, web-based parenting program. Nine modules are available in total, and parents can further tailor their program by selecting additional modules not initially recommended or opting out of recommended ones. Modules feature interactive activities, goal-setting exercises, audio clips, vignettes, illustrations, and an end-of-module quiz with immediate feedback to reinforce learning. Each module takes approximately 15-25 minutes to complete, with one module released weekly to allow time for completion and practice of weekly goals. Automated weekly emails notify parents when the next module is available via their personalized dashboard.

Behavioral: Partners in Parenting

Shamiri

EXPERIMENTAL

The Shamiri intervention (from the Swahili word for "thrive") is an evidence-based, 4-week, group-based mental health program designed for adolescents to reduce depression and anxiety. This intervention is derived from the Growth Mindset Single Session Intervention (GM-SSI) which has demonstrated effectiveness for a range of psychological problems of adolescents, including depression and anxiety

Behavioral: Shamiri

Control

NO INTERVENTION

Parents and adolescents in the control group will be assessed at baseline and 3rd month outcome assessment. To ensure equitable access to intervention materials for participants in the control group, they will have access to these materials after the follow-up assessments are completed.

Interventions

Partners in Parenting BEHAVIORAL

The Partners in Parenting (PiP) intervention is a fully automated, web-based parenting program comprising three components. First, parents complete a self-assessment scale, the Parenting to Reduce Adolescent Depression and Anxiety Scale (PRADAS), which evaluates their current parenting practices against established Guidelines. Second, based on PRADAS responses, parents receive an individually tailored feedback report highlighting their parenting strengths and areas for improvement. The feedback is designed to be concise, encourage behavior change, provide practical parenting strategies, and include links to additional resources if desired. Third, parents are recommended a series of interactive online modules, personalized according to their PRADAS responses. Nine modules are available in total, and parents can further tailor their program by selecting additional modules not initially recommended or opting out of recommended ones.

Partners in Parenting

Shamiri BEHAVIORAL

group-based mental health program designed for adolescents to reduce depression and anxiety. This intervention is derived from the Growth Mindset Single Session Intervention (GM-SSI) which has demonstrated effectiveness for a range of psychological problems of adolescents, including depression and anxiety, as well as other distress-related difficulties. Evidence indicates that GM-SSI can serve as a low-cost approach to enhance youth resilience and mental health. The shamiri is mindset program comprising: a growth mindset module (2 sessions), a gratitude module (1 session), and a values affirmation module (1 session). Sessions are delivered weekly, each lasting approximately one hour.

Shamiri

Eligibility Criteria

• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Child (0-17), Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Parents who have an adolescent aged 12-18 years. (If they have more than one child in this age bracket, only one child can participate that will be depend on their own willingness and mutual understanding).
• Have sufficient internet literacy, access, and/or ability to read and write.
• Only 1 parent-adolescent dyad/family will be eligible to participate, that will be depend on their own willingness and mutual understanding.

You may not qualify if:

• Presence of a diagnosed severe psychiatric disorder (e.g., bipolar disorder or Schizophrenia) or a severe physical illness in either the parent or adolescent that would significantly impair their ability to participate meaningfully in the study procedures.
• Lack of capacity to provide informed consent (parent) or assent (adolescent), as determined by the trained research team.
• Families who are temporary residents in the study city

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Pakistan Institute of Living and Learning: lead
• Monash University: collaborator

Study Sites (1)

Pakistan Institute of Living and Learning

Karachi, Sindh, 75600, Pakistan

Location

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Anxiety Disorders; Depression

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Mental Disorders; Behavioral Symptoms; Behavior

Central Study Contacts

Rabia Sattar, PhD (Scholar)

CONTACT

+923332976807; rabia.sattar@pill.org.pk

Nasim Chaudhry, MD

CONTACT

+923160129255; nasim.chaudhry@pill.org.pk

Study Design

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

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: August 25, 2026
• First Posted: August 27, 2026
• Study Start (Estimated): September 7, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): September 30, 2027
• Study Completion (Estimated): September 30, 2027
• Last Updated: August 27, 2026

Record last verified: 2026-08

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will share
• Shared Documents: STUDY PROTOCOL
• Time Frame: Once the trial results are published
• Access Criteria: Requests should be made to Principal Investigator

Locations

PA (1)