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Table 1 Study details for the literature review

From: Prevention and early intervention of depression in young people: an integrated narrative review of affective awareness and Ecological Momentary Assessment

Study & country EMA component/ intervention Design Age N Mental health status Timing Outcomes Summary of results
Youth (7–24)
Reid et al. (2011)
Australia 		App-based EMA monitoring of various states, including mood. Used as an intervention RCT 14–24 114 Sub-clinical, mild-moderate mental health concerns IP DASS
ESA 		Self-monitoring, via EMA, increased emotional self-awareness, but had no effects on depression
Kauer et al. (2012)
Australia 		App-based EMA monitoring of various states, including mood. Used as an intervention Secondary analysis of Reid et al. (2011) 14–24 114 Sub-clinical, mild-moderate mental health concerns IP DASS
ESA 		Self-monitoring, via EMA, had an indirect effect on depressive symptoms via emotional self-awareness. The direct effect was not significant
De Vuyst et al. (2019)
Belgium 		App-based EMA mood monitoring. Used as an intervention Pre-post 18–24 90 Non-clinical UP PHQ-9 EMA mood monitoring had no effect on affective experience or depressive symptoms
Silk et al. (2011)
USA 		EMA mood monitoring (phone calls). Used as a measurement tool in a treatment trial, to explore daily emotion dynamics Quasi 7–17 79 Clinical (DSM-IV diagnosis of MDD required for inclusion into experimental group) N/A PANAS-C Depressed participants reported more intense negative emotions, including greater sadness, anger, and nervousness, as well as a lower ratio of positive to negative affect
Forbes et al. (2012)
USA 		EMA mood monitoring (phone calls). Used as a measurement tool in a treatment trial, to predict response & course Cross-sectional 8–16 66 Clinical (K-SADS-PL diagnosis of MDD required for inclusion) N/A PANAS-C Higher negative affect and a lower ratio of positive to negative affect were related to a slower rate of decline of clinical severity during treatment
Sheets & Armey (2020)
USA 		App-based EMA mood monitoring. Used as a measurement tool, to explore daily emotion dynamics Quasi 18–22 108 Clinical (DSM-IV diagnosis of MDD required for inclusion into experimental group) N/A Negative affect Currently depressed youth reported greater average negative affect, and greater increases in negative affect to recent perceived stress, than the other two groups
Van Roekel et al. (2016)
Study 1
Netherlands 		App-based EMA mood monitoring. Used as a measurement tool, to explore daily emotion dynamics Cross-sectional 13–16 284 Non-clinical N/A BSI-AV
Positive affect 		Depressive symptoms were related to lower mean positive affect and higher variability in positive affect regardless of sex
Yen et al. (2020)
USA 		EMA mood monitoring (text messages) delivered as part of FTF STEP Pilot RCT 12–18 52 Clinical (psychiatric inpatients, admitted for suicide attempt or ideation) T mDES
BDI-II 		Parent ratings of depression were lower for youth in the intervention condition compared to the control at 3 months but not at 6 months post-treatment. No group differences for positive and negative emotions
Bai et al. (2020)
USA 		App-based EMA mood monitoring delivered as part of FTF mindfulness. Used as a measurement tool in a treatment trial RCT 18–19 52 Non-clinical UP DISE
Negative emotion 		All participants reported more negative emotions when they experienced greater than usual levels of family stress, but the association was weaker for those in the mindfulness condition
Youth and Adults (13–69)
Bakker & Rickard (2018)
Australia 		App-based EMA mood monitoring. Used as an intervention Pre-post 13–69 234 Broad community sample. Analyses by sub-clinical (≥ 15 on PHQ-9 or GAD-7; or > 10 on both) and non-clinical UP ESAS-R
PHQ-9
App engagement scale 		EMA engagement predicted decreases in depression. These effects were mediated by increases in emotional self-awareness, but only for the sub-clinical subset
Fitzpatrick et al. (2017)
USA 		App-based CBT with EMA mood monitoring RCT 18–28 70 Sub-clinical (self-identified symptoms; 46% mod-severe or severe depression at baseline) IP PHQ-9
PANAS
Qualitative reports of affective awareness 		Intervention reduced depression symptoms and participants qualitatively reported a greater amount of affective awareness
  1. EMA Component/Intervention—EMA = ecological momentary assessment, FTF = face-to-face, CBT = cognitive behavioural therapy, STEP = Skills to Enhance Positivity Program; Study Type—RCT = Randomised controlled trial; Mental Health Status—DSM-IV = Diagnostic Statistical Manual, Fourth Edition, K-SADS-PL = Kiddie Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia—Present and Lifetime Version, MDD = Major Depressive Disorder; Timing—Timing of the intervention, IP = Indicated Prevention, which involves individuals who have sub-clinical symptoms but do not meet criteria for a clinical disorder (can also be considered early intervention; UP = Universal Prevention, which involves all individuals in a population irrespective of risk or symptom levels; T = Treatment; Outcomes that are relevant for the current review—DASS = Depression Anxiety Stress Scales, ESA = Emotional Self-Awareness Scale, PHQ-9 = Patient Health Questionnaire-9, PANAS-C = Positive and Negative Affect Schedule for Children, BSI-AV = Brief Symptom Inventory-Adolescent Version, mDES = modified Differential Emotions Scale, BDI-II = Beck Depression Inventory, DISE = Daily Inventory of Stressful Events, ESAS-R = Emotional Self-awareness Scale Revised, PANAS = Positive and Negative Affect Schedule, GAD-7 = Generalised Anxiety Disorder 7
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BMC Psychology

ISSN: 2050-7283

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