Effectiveness of Moving Stories, a game-based school program aimed at depression literacy and stigma

INTERVENTION: 1. Participants will be adolescents in the second year of high school (12‐14 years old). Schools in the Netherlands will be approached and asked to participate with at least two second year classes, to allow for within‐school randomization. 2. After schools have agreed to participate, the classes will be allocated to the Moving Stories condition or the control condition by an independent researcher using computer‐generated random numbers. All parents and adolescents in the participating classes will receive an information letter via the school with information about the study. With the letter parents will receive a consent form which they have to sign and send back to give consent for their child’s participation. Before adolescents fill in the pre‐test, they will also have to give written active consent for participation. 3. To make sure that all students who seek help from teachers during the study receive the help that they need, all mentoring teachers in both conditions are provided with an information booklet with short practical tips on what they can do to help their students. The teachers will also have the opportunity to follow an e‐learning program on suicidality and depression in youth. This program, called Mental Health Online (Ghoncheh, Vos, Koot, & Kerkhof, 2013), aims to improve knowledge and self‐confidence in people working with youth and is found to be effective. For the present study the developers of Mental Health Online have added an information page on depression to the program, since the training mainly discusses suicidality in youth. 4. The students in the Moving Stories condition participate in the Moving Stories program (a game‐based school program) which consists of three parts: 1) an introduction session, 2) a video game and 3) a contact session with someone who has experienced a depressive disorder. The program targets three components of mental health literacy, namely (1) recognition of when a disorder is developin CONDITION: First Aid, Depression, Help‐seeking behaviour ; ; PRIMARY OUTCOME: 1. Post‐test and 3‐months follow‐up changes in depression literacy, stigma and help‐seeking intentions SECONDARY OUTCOME: 1. 6‐months follow‐up changes in depression literacy, stigma and help‐seeking intentions ; ; 2. 3‐ and 6‐months follow‐up changes in help‐seeking behaviour and first aid behaviour INCLUSION CRITERIA: 1. second year Dutch high school students 2. active consent from parents and students