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August 19, 2026JAMA Network OpenOpen Access

A Digital Behavioral Health Game for Adolescent Mental Health

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Authors

CBCaroline M. BarryTBTyra BoomerKHKatie Haile

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Overview

Randomized trial demonstrates sustained reductions in depressive symptoms among adolescents using a digital behavioral health game, indicating potential for scalable youth mental health interventions.

Key Points

  • To assess the effects of a codesigned digital behavioral health game on depressive and anxiety symptoms, as well as psychosocial outcomes, in adolescents over 12 months of follow-up.
  • Prespecified secondary analysis of a randomized clinical trial (NCT04941950) involving 532 adolescents (mean age 16.6 years; 53.4% male) from 15 school-based health programs in Connecticut.
  • Participants were randomized 1:1 to engage with a digital behavioral health game (n=269) for approximately 300 minutes over 6 weeks or an attention-matched active control (n=263).
  • Outcomes, including depressive symptoms (PHQ-8), anxiety symptoms (GAD-7), and beliefs about psychological services (BAPS), were evaluated through 12 months using linear mixed models.
  • A significant group-by-time interaction occurred for PHQ-8 scores (F3,1308 = 2.93; P = .03), with adjusted mean 12-month scores of 5.30 (95% CI, 4.74-5.86) in the intervention group versus 6.42 (95% CI, 5.86-6.98) in the control group (adjusted difference: -1.12 points [95% CI, -1.85 to -0.38]).
  • No significant intervention effects were detected for anxiety symptoms measured by the GAD-7, emotion regulation, or help-seeking intentions.
  • Intervention participants reported higher BAPS scores at 6 weeks (adjusted difference: 0.03 [95% CI, 0.01-0.05]), and exploratory mediation linked these early improvements to 6-month reductions in PHQ-8 scores.

Cite This Study

Barry et al. (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6a858aaf03308d306e2d7f10https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2026.29173
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Also Consider

Synapse has enriched 5 closely related papers on similar clinical questions. Consider them for comparative context:

  1. 1A Randomized Controlled Trial of A Gamified Digital Mental Health Intervention for Child Anxiety2026
  2. 2Efficacy of a Digital Cognitive–Behavioral Intervention Embedded in Routine Care Compared to Treatment as Usual in Adolescents and Young Adults With Moderate Depressive Symptoms: A Randomized Controlled Trial2026
  3. 3The use of games in the classroom to promote mental health knowledge and healthy attitudes in adolescents: a systematic review2025 · 3 citations
  4. 4Effects of exergames on depression, anxiety, and sleep in adolescents with subthreshold depression: a randomized controlled trial2026
  5. 5Digital Game-Based Learning Interventions to Alleviate Depressive Symptoms in Adolescents and Young Adults: A Scoping Review2026