Digital Media Interventions for Adolescent Mental Health

Abstract

There remains a persistent need for mental health services among youth, with the majority of youth untreated. Digital mental health interventions (DMHIs) have the potential to revolutionize mental health care for adolescents. DMHIs are digital tools aiding in detection, prevention, and treatment of mental health problems for adolescents. DMHIs provide interventions and services that are accessible, low-cost, and available to adolescents. This chapter discusses barriers to mental health care among adolescents, followed by a discussion of how DMHIs can address these barriers to improve access to and quality of adolescent mental health services. It reviews research on DMHIs and digital frameworks used to collect and deliver psychoeducation, assessment, and interventions across hardware (e.g., smartphones, computers) and modalities (e.g., online, text, apps). It concludes with a discussion of current limitations of DMHIs and directions for the field to improve the development, dissemination, and implementation of adolescent mental health care using DMHIs.