(PS10-A10) Piloting the Feasibility and Effectiveness of a Centralized Hub for Mental Health Apps Within Formalized Youth Mentoring Relationships

Technology-delivered interventions, such as mental health apps (MHapps), attempt to meet youth mental health needs through a low-cost, easily-accessible alternative to traditional talk therapy. However, many commercial MHapps are not empirically-supported and produce similar effect sizes to treatments provided by mental health professionals. Research shows mentors can provide much-needed supportive accountability for youth engaging with MHapps to improve overall mental health outcomes. MentorHub is a novel, multi-sided platform developed by clinical scientists that allow mentors to monitor and support youth interactions with rigorously screened, evidence-based MHapps. The present study used a randomized controlled design to explore the feasibility and impact of using MentorHub within existing mentoring relationships in large, well-established youth mentoring programs. 

Participants include pairs drawn from four well-established mentoring programs in the United States that pair volunteer mentors with referred youth. Pairs were randomized to receive access to MentorHub throughout their typical mentoring activities or a “mentoring-as-usual” waitlist control for 12 weeks. Mentors in the MentorHub condition were virtually orientated to the MentorHub app and coached through installing and using it with their mentees. Both groups completed measures of youth mental health, mentor burnout, and mentoring self-efficacy at baseline and 6-week and 12-week follow-ups. In addition, the MentorHub group completed the Usefulness, Satisfaction, and Ease of Use Questionnaire (USE) to rate satisfaction and engagement with the app at both follow-ups. In addition, pairs were invited to participate in optional focus groups following 12 weeks of MentorHub use, and these responses were transcribed and coded for common facilitators and barriers to engagement.

Preliminary analyses with 21 mentor-youth pairs (Mmentorage = 38 years; Myouthage = 15 years) showed much variability in mentors’ tendencies to support youth engagement with MHapps. On a scale from 1 to 5, youth reported an average of 3.6 (2.2-6.2) for the extent to which their mentor supported MentorHub use at the 6-week follow-up. On the USE, mentors rated all dimensions of app usability as somewhat lower than standard guidelines for new technologies (overall USE average: 3.9; standard guideline for good usability: 6). Qualitative coding showed that mentees generally found the app usable and that mentors and mentees enjoyed how technology made it easier to continuously assess mentees’ mental health concerns. However, some limitations to effectively integrating MHapps into youth lives include problems with mentees’ inconsistent access to needed technology, existing habits around others, competing tools (e.g., FaceTime, WhatsApp), and life stressors or logistical issues within the mentoring relationship that interfered with mentor-youth interactions more broadly and prevented MHapps use from “getting off the ground.” Additional analyses will utilize the randomized, controlled design to investigate the impact of MentorHub on youth depression, anxiety, emotion regulation, social support, mentor burnout, and self-efficacy.