This report builds on a highly valued predecessor, the 1994 Institute of Medicine (IOM) report entitled Reducing Risks for Mental Disorders: Frontiers for Preventive Intervention Research. That report provided the basis for understanding prevention science, elucidating its then-existing research base, and contemplating where it should go in the future. This report documents that an increasing number of mental, emotional, and behavioral problems in young people are in fact preventable. The proverbial ounce of prevention will indeed be worth a pound of cure: effectively applying the evidence-based prevention interventions at hand could potentially save billions of dollars in associated costs by avoiding or tempering these disorders in many individuals. Furthermore, devoting significantly greater resources to research on even more effective prevention and promotion efforts, and then reliably implementing the findings of such research, could substantially diminish the human and economic toll.

Preventing Mental, Emotional, and Behavioral Disorders Among Young People: Progress and Possibilities

Social and demographic trends are placing an increasing number of adults at risk for loneliness, an established risk factor for physical and mental illness. The growing costs of loneliness have led to a number of loneliness reduction interventions. Qualitative reviews have identified four primary intervention strategies: (a) improving social skills, (b) enhancing social support, (c) increasing opportunities for social contact, and (d) addressing maladaptive social cognition. An integrative meta-analysis of loneliness reduction interventions was conducted to quantify the effects of each strategy and to examine the potential role of moderator variables. Results revealed that single-group pre-post and nonrandomized comparison studies yielded larger mean effect sizes relative to randomized comparison studies. Among studies that used the latter design, the most successful interventions addressed maladaptive social cognition. This is consistent with current theories regarding loneliness and its etiology. Theoretical and methodological issues associated with designing new loneliness reduction interventions are discussed.

/pdf/a-meta-analysis-of-interventions-to-reduce-loneliness-4djy8djmyx.pdf

A Meta-Analysis of Interventions to Reduce Loneliness:

Computerized and, more recently, Internet-based treatments for depression have been developed and tested in controlled trials. The aim of this meta-analysis was to summarize the effects of these treatments and investigate characteristics of studies that may be related to the effects. In particular, the authors were interested in the role of personal support when completing a computerized treatment. Following a literature search and coding, the authors included 12 studies, with a total of 2446 participants. Ten of the 12 studies were delivered via the Internet. The mean effect size of the 15 comparisons between Internet-based and other computerized psychological treatments vs. control groups at posttest was d = 0.41 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.29-0.54). However, this estimate was moderated by a significant difference between supported (d = 0.61; 95% CI: 0.45-0.77) and unsupported (d = 0.25; 95% CI: 0.14-0.35) treatments. The authors conclude that although more studies are needed, Internet and other computerized treatments hold promise as potentially evidence-based treatments of depression.

/pdf/internet-based-and-other-computerized-psychological-215nxmkudm.pdf

Internet-Based and Other Computerized Psychological Treatments for Adult Depression: A Meta-Analysis

http://www.tara.tcd.ie/bitstream/handle/2262/63861/Computer-based%20psychological%20treatments%20for%20depression-%20A%20systematic%20review%20and%20meta-analysis.pdf?sequence=1

Computer-based psychological treatments for depression: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Internet-based psychotherapeutic interventions have been used for more than a decade, but no comprehensive review and no extensive meta-analysis of their effectiveness have been conducted. We have collected all of the empirical articles published up to March 2006 (n = 64) that examine the effectiveness of online therapy of different forms and performed a meta-analysis of all the studies reported in them (n = 92). These studies involved a total of 9,764 clients who were treated through various Internet-based psychological interventions for a variety of problems, whose effectiveness was assessed by different types of measures. The overall mean weighted effect size was found to be 0.53 (medium effect), which is quite similar to the average effect size of traditional, face-to-face therapy. Next, we examined interacting effects of various possible relevant moderators of the effects of online therapy, including type of therapy (self-help web-based therapy versus online communication-based etherapy), ty...

/pdf/a-comprehensive-review-and-a-meta-analysis-of-the-23saazmujq.pdf

A Comprehensive Review and a Meta-Analysis of the Effectiveness of Internet-Based Psychotherapeutic Interventions

The purpose of the current research was to test the psychological impact of learning how to use computers and the Internet in old age, hypothesizing that such activities would contribute to seniors’ well-being and personal sense of empowerment. Employing a quasi-experimental research design, we offered a course, conducted in small groups, in computer operation and Internet browsing to 22 older adults (mean age of 80) who went to day-care centers for the elderly or resided in nursing homes. A comparison group of 26 participants (similar in all major respects) was engaged in other activities. Both groups were administered measures of physical functioning, life satisfaction, depression, loneliness and self-control at pre- and post-intervention four months later. Individual semi-structured interviews were conducted with participants who finished the computer course. ANCOVA was employed for controlling the effects of control variables and pre-intervention differences on participants who completed the activitie...

http://globalag.igc.org/elderrights/us/2007/internet.pdf

Promoting older adults' well-being through Internet training and use.

Decision-makers matter: An operational model for environmental-economic conflict resolution

Cyberattacks on critical infrastructure systems are becoming a significant concern. Sabotage and destruction of critical infrastructures may cause devastating impacts on physical systems, e...

Naama Shapira

Papers

A Comprehensive Review and a Meta-Analysis of the Effectiveness of Internet-Based Psychotherapeutic Interventions

Promoting older adults' well-being through Internet training and use.

Decision-makers matter: An operational model for environmental-economic conflict resolution

Cybersecurity in Water Sector: Stakeholders Perspective

Impressions formed in response to public self-evaluation maintenance strategies