A study of more than 2,400 adolescents ages 13 to 16 shows two online, single-session interventions designed to help curb teen depression works, a tool very much needed given a rise in teen depression and loss of some in-person mental health services during the COVID-19 pandemic. Led by Jessica Schleider, assistant professor in the Department of Psychology at Stony Brook University, the study findings are published in Nature Human Behaviour.

Photo of Jessica Schleider.

Teenagers who experience depression symptoms often cannot access professional help. Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, it is estimated less than half of adolescents/teenagers with depression access help. One recent study suggested that childhood and adolescent anxiety and depression doubled during the first year of the pandemic.

For this study, adolescents experiencing elevated depressive symptoms participated in one of two online single-session interventions (SSI), the first teaching “behavioral activation” (the idea that taking positive action can boost your mood), and the second teaching “growth mindset” (the idea that depression symptoms and personal traits are changeable). They were recruited for the study via social media (Instagram) and came from all 50 U.S. states.

“We discovered that both of the SSIs significantly reduced teens’ depression symptoms and levels of hopelessness compared to the control group three months later,” says Schleider. “On average, the effects on depression were moderate, in some teens the SSIs helped reduce their symptoms a lot, for others only a small amount. But on a public health scale, since the programs are so easily accessible, and free, this type of intervention could help reduce the overall burden of depression in this vulnerable population of youth.”

Their overall results, the authors write, confirm the utility of free-of-charge, online SSIs for high-symptom adolescents, even in the high-stress COVID-19 context.

Read the full story: https://news.stonybrook.edu/facultystaff/online-interventions-help-with-teen-depression/

For the fifth consecutive year of the #DontTrashLISound social media campaign — organized by New York Sea Grant (NYSG) and Connecticut Sea Grant (CTSG) with support from Long Island Sound Study (LISS); the Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk, CT; Save the Sound; and other groups — partners focus on hope for reducing plastic pollution in the estuary by highlighting positive steps people are taking to address the issue.

List of common litter items found on beaches and in the Long Island Sound. 

“Plastic pollution is one of those issues that can easily feel overwhelming, but there is actually a great deal of good news to be shared,” said LISS Outreach Coordinator Jimena Perez-Viscasillas, a NYSG Cornell Cooperative Extension specialist based at Stony Brook University. “Our hope for this year’s campaign is to shed light on some of that exciting work being done here — and around the world — to encourage people to remain hopeful and proactive in their environmental stewardship.”

Messages on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram will inspire people to #DoOneThing to reduce plastic pollution in their communities. Success stories, local leaders, and marine debris prevention and cleanup efforts will shine a positive light on what is being done to combat this everyday issue. There are solutions and alternatives that Long Island communities can use to prevent the tons of plastic that enter Long Island Sound and harm our wildlife.

The campaign kicked off with a cleanup event on August 16 in Connecticut. The ultimate goal of this campaign is to inspire people to clean up trash on the beaches, avoid single-use plastics and reduce the amount of plastic pollution in the Sound.

Read the full story: https://news.stonybrook.edu/community-outreach/annual-donttrashlisound-campaign-aims-to-reduce-plastic-pollution/

WUSB-FM, Stony Brook University’s non-commercial radio station, was honored by Suffolk County, RESPONSE Crisis Center of Suffolk, and the New York Blood Center for its communication efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic. The station and several staff members were recognized in a ceremony Sept. 27 in the SAC Auditorium for providing continuous and important guidance during the crisis.

WUSB-FM, the Stony Brook University Student Blood Drive Committee and the Office of Government and Community Relations were honored for their efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic.

WUSB received a proclamation from Suffolk County Legislator Kara Hahn, who cited the station’s dedication and commitment to COVID-19 and pandemic-related programming and for delivering important and timely information via interviews, public service announcements, official New York State and Suffolk County communications, and more.

“Stony Brook is an incredibly important part of the community, both economically and culturally,” said Hahn, who grew up in Stony Brook and is parent to a university alum. “When the pandemic hit, there was a lot of misinformation being spread. We relied on WUSB to share information from trusted sources and we’re grateful for all they did to help get important and accurate information out there.”

The event opened with a video highlighting the station’s history, followed by opening remarks from Kate Valerio, co-host of WUSB’s “Taking Care of Yourself” program and board member of the RESPONSE Crisis Center, a 24×7 suicide prevention hotline.

“RESPONSE has resources available 24×7, 365 days a year,” said Valerio. “People ask how we do it. The answer is we’re able to do it because of partners like Stony Brook and WUSB.”

Valerio cited the station’s communication efforts as people struggled with the difficult challenges the pandemic presented. The partnership between RESPONSE and WUSB, now in its fiftieth year, began in 1971, after an unsuccessful on-campus suicide attempt.

Read the full story: https://news.stonybrook.edu/university/wusb-honored-for-life-saving-pandemic-programming/