Effectiveness of a comic book intervention on mental health literacy among adolescents and youth in Burkina Faso: a randomized controlled trial protocol
Abstract Background In Burkina Faso, nearly half of the population is under 15 years old, and one in four adolescents experience depression. This underscores the critical need to enhance mental health literacy among adolescents and youth, empowering them to manage their mental well-being effectively...
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| Language: | English |
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BMC
2025-01-01
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| Series: | BMC Public Health |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-025-21325-2 |
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| author | Irene Brandt Sylvain Some Ourohiré Millogo Oumar Sourabié Jacob Burns Sachin Shinde Matthias Haucke Nathan Sivewright Christine Neumann Shraddha Bajaria Katian Napon Clarisse Dah Marina Taonda Jason T. Siegel Mary Mwanyika Sando Till Bärnighausen Ali Sié Shuyan Liu |
| author_facet | Irene Brandt Sylvain Some Ourohiré Millogo Oumar Sourabié Jacob Burns Sachin Shinde Matthias Haucke Nathan Sivewright Christine Neumann Shraddha Bajaria Katian Napon Clarisse Dah Marina Taonda Jason T. Siegel Mary Mwanyika Sando Till Bärnighausen Ali Sié Shuyan Liu |
| author_sort | Irene Brandt |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background In Burkina Faso, nearly half of the population is under 15 years old, and one in four adolescents experience depression. This underscores the critical need to enhance mental health literacy among adolescents and youth, empowering them to manage their mental well-being effectively. Comic books offer an engaging approach to health education, yet their effectiveness in addressing mental health remains largely untested. Our study aims to fill this gap by evaluating the effectiveness of comic books in enhancing mental health literacy among adolescents and young adults aged 10–24 years. Methods We will recruit 2,007 participants aged 10–24, stratify them by age, and randomly assign them to three groups (1:1:1): a comic book intervention group (Intervention 1), a text-only flyer group (Intervention 2), and a control group with no intervention. The primary outcome will be mental health literacy and secondary outcomes will include anxiety, depression, and intentions to cope. Discussion We hypothesize that the comic book intervention and flyer intervention will prove more effective in improving mental health literacy than the control group. We further hypothesize that for younger adolescents (10–14), the comic book will be more effective at increasing mental health literacy than the flyer. Conversely, we hypothesize that the flyer will be more effective in increasing mental health literacy for older adolescents (15–24). Our study will provide evidence on novel interventions designed to enhance mental health literacy among adolescents and young adults in low-resource settings. Trial registration This trial has been registered on the German Clinical Trials Register (DRKS), with the registration number DRKS00034242. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-cd20363795ce48c4a7f3783e800b7fc7 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1471-2458 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BMC Public Health |
| spelling | doaj-art-cd20363795ce48c4a7f3783e800b7fc72025-01-12T12:42:33ZengBMCBMC Public Health1471-24582025-01-012511910.1186/s12889-025-21325-2Effectiveness of a comic book intervention on mental health literacy among adolescents and youth in Burkina Faso: a randomized controlled trial protocolIrene Brandt0Sylvain Some1Ourohiré Millogo2Oumar Sourabié3Jacob Burns4Sachin Shinde5Matthias Haucke6Nathan Sivewright7Christine Neumann8Shraddha Bajaria9Katian Napon10Clarisse Dah11Marina Taonda12Jason T. Siegel13Mary Mwanyika Sando14Till Bärnighausen15Ali Sié16Shuyan Liu17Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy (Campus Charité Mitte), Charité – Universitätsmedizin BerlinNouna Health Research Center (CRSN)Nouna Health Research Center (CRSN)Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Sourô SanouTUM School of Medicine and Health, Technical University of MunichDepartment of Global Health and Population, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public HealthDepartment of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy (Campus Charité Mitte), Charité – Universitätsmedizin BerlinTUM School of Medicine and Health, Technical University of MunichHeidelberg Institute of Global HealthAfrica Academy for Public Health (AAPH)Nouna Health Research Center (CRSN)Nouna Health Research Center (CRSN)Nouna Health Research Center (CRSN)School of Social Science, Policy, and Evaluation, Claremont Graduate UniversityAfrica Academy for Public Health (AAPH)Heidelberg Institute of Global HealthNouna Health Research Center (CRSN)Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy (Campus Charité Mitte), Charité – Universitätsmedizin BerlinAbstract Background In Burkina Faso, nearly half of the population is under 15 years old, and one in four adolescents experience depression. This underscores the critical need to enhance mental health literacy among adolescents and youth, empowering them to manage their mental well-being effectively. Comic books offer an engaging approach to health education, yet their effectiveness in addressing mental health remains largely untested. Our study aims to fill this gap by evaluating the effectiveness of comic books in enhancing mental health literacy among adolescents and young adults aged 10–24 years. Methods We will recruit 2,007 participants aged 10–24, stratify them by age, and randomly assign them to three groups (1:1:1): a comic book intervention group (Intervention 1), a text-only flyer group (Intervention 2), and a control group with no intervention. The primary outcome will be mental health literacy and secondary outcomes will include anxiety, depression, and intentions to cope. Discussion We hypothesize that the comic book intervention and flyer intervention will prove more effective in improving mental health literacy than the control group. We further hypothesize that for younger adolescents (10–14), the comic book will be more effective at increasing mental health literacy than the flyer. Conversely, we hypothesize that the flyer will be more effective in increasing mental health literacy for older adolescents (15–24). Our study will provide evidence on novel interventions designed to enhance mental health literacy among adolescents and young adults in low-resource settings. Trial registration This trial has been registered on the German Clinical Trials Register (DRKS), with the registration number DRKS00034242.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-025-21325-2Mental disorder knowledgeHealth education and communicationStigmaHelp-seekingDepression and anxietyMental illness |
| spellingShingle | Irene Brandt Sylvain Some Ourohiré Millogo Oumar Sourabié Jacob Burns Sachin Shinde Matthias Haucke Nathan Sivewright Christine Neumann Shraddha Bajaria Katian Napon Clarisse Dah Marina Taonda Jason T. Siegel Mary Mwanyika Sando Till Bärnighausen Ali Sié Shuyan Liu Effectiveness of a comic book intervention on mental health literacy among adolescents and youth in Burkina Faso: a randomized controlled trial protocol BMC Public Health Mental disorder knowledge Health education and communication Stigma Help-seeking Depression and anxiety Mental illness |
| title | Effectiveness of a comic book intervention on mental health literacy among adolescents and youth in Burkina Faso: a randomized controlled trial protocol |
| title_full | Effectiveness of a comic book intervention on mental health literacy among adolescents and youth in Burkina Faso: a randomized controlled trial protocol |
| title_fullStr | Effectiveness of a comic book intervention on mental health literacy among adolescents and youth in Burkina Faso: a randomized controlled trial protocol |
| title_full_unstemmed | Effectiveness of a comic book intervention on mental health literacy among adolescents and youth in Burkina Faso: a randomized controlled trial protocol |
| title_short | Effectiveness of a comic book intervention on mental health literacy among adolescents and youth in Burkina Faso: a randomized controlled trial protocol |
| title_sort | effectiveness of a comic book intervention on mental health literacy among adolescents and youth in burkina faso a randomized controlled trial protocol |
| topic | Mental disorder knowledge Health education and communication Stigma Help-seeking Depression and anxiety Mental illness |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-025-21325-2 |
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