Brief behavioural activation therapy for adolescent depression in schools: two case examples

ABSTRACT

Symptoms of depression are common in adolescents and have negative impacts on academic engagement and achievement, as well as on future mental health and functioning. A number of psychological therapies are effective for the treatment of adolescent depression but there are barriers to young people accessing treatment promptly. Providing treatment in school may help improve access to mental health care; school-based mental health care is routinely provided in some parts of the world and is currently a policy priority in the UK. However, introducing mental health services into schools will require services to adapt. This paper illustrates how a short-term psychological therapy can be delivered successfully in schools. It describes the treatment and outcomes for two young people with symptoms of depression. Both received Brief Behavioural Activation (Brief BA) which has been adapted specifically for adolescents. Brief BA focuses on helping young people engage with valued activities in different areas of their life, thus increasing rewards and reducing symptoms of depression. The two cases highlight a range of educational and clinical benefits of Brief BA for young people with depression symptoms and illustrate how the treatment and service delivery were adapted for schools.

KEYWORDS:

• Adolescents
• depression
• behavioural activation
• secondary school

Acknowledgments

Thank you to ‘Matthew’ and ‘Anna’ for agreeing to share their stories, and to their families. Thank you to all the school staff who supported the project, and to the funding support of the Titcomb Foundation Charitable Trust and the Charlie Waller Memorial Trust.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This research was funded by charitable donations from the Titcomb Foundation Charitable Trust and the Charlie Waller Memorial Trust.

Notes on contributors

Simon Brett

Simon Brett is a Cotutelle PhD Candidate at the School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences at the University of Reading and the Department of Education at Macquarie University.

Shirley Reynolds

Shirley Reynolds is visiting Professor at the School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences. Her research is focused on understanding and treating depression in young people.

Formerly a research clinical psychologist at the University of Reading, Jonathan now works in a clinical role in Oxford.

Laura Pass

Laura Pass is a Clinical Associate Professor and Director of the Education Mental Health Practitioner (EMHP) programme at the University of East Anglia. She has a particular interest in adolescent depression, and brief evidence-based psychological therapies for youth mental health.