Grant: Master's Award: Canada Graduate Scholarships

The need for accessible mental health support among youth (aged 12-18) in Canada continues to rise. Mobile health (mHealth) apps can reach underserved youth and provide immediate mental health support through personalized app features. The JoyPop app is an evidence-based, resilience-building app focused on promoting youth wellness and emotion regulation skills. The JoyPop app has been especially helpful within Northwestern Ontario in supporting Indigenous and non-Indigenous youth to enhance their self-regulation capacity and reduce depressive symptoms outside of mental health services. The JoyPop app may also function as a tool for youth in mental health services to enhance treatment outcomes, making mental healthcare more efficient and increasing accessibility for youth seeking services. To explore how the JoyPop app can be implemented and used alongside services, this study will assess whether youth engaged in services use the JoyPop app and its impact on youth outcomes. A sample of 84 youth receiving treatment from Children's Centre Thunder Bay will use the app for four months while completing an outcome monitoring measure, every session, assessing participant well-being and therapeutic alliance. Descriptive statistics will be used to assess app use data. A linear mixed effects model will assess changes in outcome monitoring scores over time compared to outcome scores prior JoyPop implementation. It is anticipated that the JoyPop app will be used in support of services and promote positive youth treatment outcomes. Findings from this study will help assess the benefits of incorporating an app-based mental health tool alongside services offered at a children's mental health organization to support treatment efficiency.