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After a long period of relative neglect, the mental well-being and the mental health of researchers and employees in academia are increasingly entering the limelight. The growing body of evidence suggests that a high number of doctoral researchers work under elevated levels of stress and frustration, and that this has a significant impact not only on their personal health and research output, but also on their future career development. In this paper, therefore, we first discuss what a dystopian and a utopian learning journey of early career researchers may look like from a well-being perspective. Subsequently, and based on extensive dialogues with more than 250 researchers and professionals active in the researcher mental health domain, we highlight a number of key focal points that both early career researchers, their supervisors, and institutions alike should consider when it comes to planning and delivering mental health oriented educational activities for doctoral researchers.

Reducing the spread of infectious viruses (e.g., COVID-19) can depend on societal compliance with effective mitigations. Identifying factors that influence adherence can inform public policy. In many cases, public health messaging has become highly moralized, focusing on the need to act for the greater good. In such contexts, a person's moral identity may influence behavior and serve to increase compliance through different mechanisms: if a person sees compliance as the right thing to do (internalization) and/or if a person perceives compliance as something others will notice as the right thing to do (symbolization). We argue that in societies that are more politically polarized, people's political ideology may interact with their moral identity to predict compliance. We hypothesized that where polarization is high (e.g., USA), moral identity should positively predict compliance for liberals to a greater extent than for conservatives. However, this effect would not occur where polarization is low (e.g., New Zealand). Moral identity, political ideology, and support for three different COVID-19 mitigation measures were assessed in both nations (

Globally, TikTok is now the fastest growing social media platform among children and young people; but it remains surprisingly under-researched in psychology and psychiatry. This is despite the fact that social media platforms have been subject to intense academic and societal scrutiny regarding their potentially adverse effects on youth mental health and wellbeing, notwithstanding the inconsistent findings across the literature. In this two part study, we conducted a systematic review concerning studies that have examined TikTok for any public health or mental health purpose; and a follow-up content analysis of TikTok within an Irish context. For study 1, a predetermined search strategy covering representative public and mental health terminology was applied to six databases – PSYCINFO, Google Scholar, PUBMED, Wiley, Journal of Medical Internet Research, ACM – within the period 2016 to 2021. Included studies were limited to English-speaking publications of any design where TikTok was the primary focus of the study. The quality appraisal tool by Dunne et al., (2018) was applied to all included studies. For study 2, we replicated our search strategy from study 1, and converted this terminology to TikTok hashtags to search within TikTok in combination with Irish-specific hashtags. As quantified by the app, the top two “most liked” videos were selected for inclusion across the following three targeted groups: official public health accounts; registered Irish charities; and personal TikTok creators. A full descriptive analysis was applied in both studies. Study 1 found 24 studies that covered a range of public and mental health issues: COVID-19 ( n = 10), dermatology ( n = 7), eating disorders ( n = 1), cancer ( n = 1), tics ( n = 1), radiology ( n = 1), sexual health ( n = 1), DNA ( n = 1), and public health promotion ( n = 1). Studies were predominately from the USA, applied a content analysis design, and were of acceptable quality overall. In study 2, 29 Irish TikTok accounts were analysed, including the accounts of public health authorities ( n = 2), charity or non-profit ( n = 5), and personal TikTok creators ( n = 22). The overall engagement data from these accounts represented a significant outreach to younger populations: total likes n = 2,588,181; total comments n = 13,775; and total shares n = 21,254. TikTok has been utilised for a range of public health purposes, but remains poorly engaged by institutional accounts. The various mechanisms for connecting with younger audiences presents a unique opportunity for youth mental health practitioners to consider, yet there were distinct differences in how TikTok accounts used platform features to interact. Overall, there is an absence of high quality mixed methodological evaluations of TikTok content for public and mental health, despite it being the most used platform for children and young people.

The ReMO COST Action is a network of stakeholders from all levels of the research community and from over 40 countries. ReMO calls for leadership at the EU level to make researcher mental health and well-being a priority in its research and innovation policies, for instance, by placing researcher mental health more prominently on the agenda of the redrafting of the European Charter for Researchers and the Code of Conduct for the Recruitment of Researchers. ReMO has drafted a Researcher Mental Health and Well-being Manifesto that calls for the assessment of how the mental health and well-being of researchers can best be nourished and sustained through actions and initiatives at the policy, institutional, community and individual levels. The Manifesto calls on all stakeholders in the research ecosystem to engage in developing policies that monitor, improve, and sustain well-being and mental health in the research environment, delineating more encompassing metrics of success and quality, supporting work-life balance, inclusiveness, and family-friendly sustainable research careers. Research shows that low levels of well-being and mental health problems in research workplaces have a negative impact on individual, team, and organisational performance, triggering significant material and immaterial costs. In addition, institutional context, organisational structure and culture, as well as managerial practices have significant impact on the well-being and health of employees. Therefore, general insights into the causes of workplace well-being and mental health need to be refined with contextual specifics (i.e. in academia) in order to develop tailored, effective, and efficient prevention and action programs. The ReMO COST Action on Researcher Mental Health addresses these limitations using a threefold approach: We are developing a conceptual framework and tools that are tailored to the academic context taking into account the specifics and challenges of academia and academic work (e.g. performance management of academics, an increasingly competitive landscape for recruiting and retaining talented employees, increasing challenges of dealing with diversity and internationalisation, job insecurity, etc.); We take a multilevel perspective on problems and problem generating mechanisms, but also on positive organisational behaviour in support of meaningful work and well-being; We use a diversity of methods with short feedback loops between theory and practice. ReMO participants include academics, practitioners, policy-makers and consultants for higher education institutions. They represent an international mix of scientific knowledge and practice on researcher mental health and much needed interdisciplinary (e.g. psychology, sociology, business administration), multilevel (individual, organisational, system) and intercultural perspectives. The launch event of the Researcher Mental Health and Well-being Manifesto was set up as a meeting held within the context of the Conference on the Future of Europe. We attach the pdf version of the Researcher Mental Health and Well-being Manifesto, which is available at: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5788557 ReMO is supported by the COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology), a funding agency for research and innovation networks, whose Actions help connect research, This Feedback was submitted to the European Commission Initiative on "A comprehensive approach to mental health". It can be viewed on the European Commission website at: https://ec.europa.eu/info/law/better-regulation/have-your-say/initiatives/13676-A-comprehensive-approach-to-mental-health/F3382135_en This work was performed within the framework of COST Action CA19117 - "Researcher Mental Health"., {"references":["Gábor Kismihók, Brian Cahill, Stéphanie Gauttier, Janet Metcalfe, Stefan T. Mol, Darragh McCashin, Jana Lasser, Murat Güneş, Mathias Schroijen, Martin Grund, Katia Levecque, Susan Guthrie, Katarzyna Wac, Jesper Dahlgaard, Mohamad Nadim Adi, & Christina Kling. (2021). Researcher Mental Health and Well-being Manifesto. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5788557"]}

H δράση ReMO COST είναι ένα δίκτυο ενδιαφερομένων από όλα τα επίπεδα της ερευνητικής κοινότητας που έχει συντάξει ένα Μανιφέστο για την Ψυχική Υγεία και Ευεξία του Ερευνητή, που ζητά την αξιολόγηση του τρόπου με τον οποίο η ψυχική υγεία και η ευημερία των ερευνητών μπορεί να τροφοδοτηθεί και να διατηρηθεί καλύτερα, μέσα από δράσεις και πρωτοβουλίες σε πολιτικό, θεσμικό, κοινοτικό και ατομικό επίπεδο. Αυτό το μανιφέστο καλεί όλα τα ενδιαφερόμενα μέρη στο ερευνητικό οικοσύστημα να συμμετάσχουν στην ανάπτυξη πολιτικών που παρακολουθούν, βελτιώνουν και διατηρούν την ευημερία και την ψυχική υγεία στο ερευνητικό περιβάλλον, οριοθετώντας πιο περιεκτικές μετρήσεις επιτυχίας και ποιότητας, υποστηρίζοντας την ισορροπία μεταξύ επαγγελματικής και προσωπικής ζωής, και φιλικές προς την οικογένεια βιώσιμες ερευνητικές σταδιοδρομίες. The English Language Version of the Manifesto can be found at: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5559805, Translated into Greek by Adrian Stavrakis. This work was performed within the framework of COST Action CA19117 - "Researcher Mental Health"., {"references":["Council conclusions on \"Deepening the European Research Area: Providing researchers with attractive andsustainable careers and working conditions and making brain circulation a reality\", https://www.consilium.europa.eu/media/49980/st09138-en21.pdf","OECD. (2021). Reducing the precarity of academic research careers.https://doi.org/10.1787/0f8bd468-en","WHO, Healthy Workplace Framework and Model (2010) https://www.who.int/occupational_health/healthy_workplace_framework.pdf","ILO, Mental Health in the workplace (2010) https://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---ed_emp/---ifp_skills/documents/publication/wcms_108221.pdf","Levecque, K., et.al. (2017). Work organization and mental health problems in PhD students. Research Policy, 46(4), 868-879. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.respol.2017.02.008","Guthrie, S., et.al., Understanding mental health in the research environment: A Rapid Evidence Assessment. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation, 2017. https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RR2022.html","Barry, K. M., et.al. (2018). Psychological health of doctoral candidates, study-related challenges and perceived performance. Higher Education Research & Development, 37(3), 468-483. https://doi.org/10.1080/07294360.2018.1425979","Garcia-Williams, A. G., et.al. (2014). Mental health and suicidal behavior among graduate students. Academic psychiatry, 38(5), 554-560.https://doi.org/10.1007/s40596-014-0041-y","Mattijssen, L. M. S., Bergmans, J. E., van der Weijden, I. C. M., & Teelken, J. C. (2021). In the eye of the storm: The mental health situation of PhD candidates. Perspectives on Medical Education, 10(2), 71–72, https://doi.org/10.1007/s40037-020-00639-4","Satinsky, E. N., Kimura, T., Kiang, M. V., Abebe, R., Cunningham, S., Lee, H., Lin, X., Liu, C. H., Rudan, I., Sen, S., Tomlinson, M., Yaver, M., & Tsai, A. C. (2021). Systematic review and meta-analysis of depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation among Ph.D. students. Scientific Reports, 11(1), 14370. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-93687-7","Olsthoorn, L. H. M., Heckmann, L. A., Filippi, A., Vieira, R. M., Varanasi, R. S., Lasser, J., Bäuerle, F., Zeis, P., & Schulte-Sasse, R. (2020). Max Planck PhDnet Survey 2019 Report. Max Planck PhDNet. https://www.phdnet.mpg.de/145345/PhDnet_Survey_Report_2019.pdf","Centre for Strategy & Evaluation Services LLP (CSES), Directorate-General for Research and Innovation (European Commission), Whittle, M., & Rampton, J. (2020). Towards a 2030 vision on the future of universities in Europe. Publications Office of the European Union. https://data.europa.eu/doi/10.2777/510530","CA19117 - Researcher Mental Health Action is funded by COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology) for the period 1 November 2020 - 31 October 2024 https://www.cost.eu/actions/CA19117","Cactus Foundation Mental Health Survey. (2020). https://www.cactusglobal.com/mental-health-survey/","Initiative for Science in Europe. (2021). Position on precarity of academic careers. https://initiative-se.eu/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Research-Precarity-ISE-position.pdf","Woolston, C. (2019). PhDs: The tortuous truth. Nature, 575(7782), 403–406. https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-019-03459-7","Kismihók, G., et al.. (2019). Declaration on Sustainable Researcher Careers. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3082245","Innstrand, S. T., & Christensen, M. (2020). Healthy Universities. The development and implementation of a holistic health promotion intervention programme especially adapted for staff working in the higher educational sector: The ARK study. Global Health Promotion, 27(1), 68–76. https://doi.org/10.1177/1757975918786877","Solloway, A. (2020, September 14). Promoting a culture of wellbeing for researchers and improving the way we evaluate research [Speech]. Vitae Connections Week. https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/science-minister-at-vitae-connections-week-2020","Wellbeing and mental health lens on the Vitae Researcher Development Framework (RDF) https://www.vitae.ac.uk/vitae-publications/rdf-related/wellbeing-and-mental-health-lens/view","Woolston, C. (2020). Postdocs under pressure: 'Can I even do this any more?' Nature, 587(7835), 689–692. https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-020-03235-y","Moss, S., & Mahmoudi, M. (2021). STEM the Bullying: An Empirical Investigation of Abusive Supervision in Academic Science. SSRN Electronic Journal. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3850784","Some research communities already started developing mentoring programmes, like Referent at the Marie Curie Alumni Association https://www.mariecuriealumni.eu/referent-mentoring-initiative-msca-early-career-researchers","Devine, K., & Hunter, K. H. (2017). PhD student emotional exhaustion: The role of supportive supervision and self-presentation behaviours. Innovations in Education and Teaching International, 54(4), 335–344. https://doi.org/10.1080/14703297.2016.1174143","Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions. (2020). Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions guidelines on supervision. https://ec.europa.eu/research/mariecurieactions/node/901"]}

Acțiunea ReMO COST este o rețea de părți interesate de la toate nivelurile comunității de cercetare, care a elaborat un manifest pentru sănătatea mintală și starea de bine a cercetătorilor; se solicită evaluarea modului în care sănătatea mintală și starea de bine a acestora pot fi cel mai bine alimentate și susținute prin acțiuni și inițiative la nivel instituțional, comunitar, individual și de politici. Acest manifest solicită tuturor părților interesate din ecosistemul de cercetare să se implice în dezvoltarea politicilor care monitorizează, îmbunătățesc și mențin starea de bine și sănătatea mintală în mediul de cercetare, conturând valori mai cuprinzătoare ale succesului și calității, susținând echilibrul dintre viața profesională și viața privată, incluziunea, și cariere de cercetare sustenabile, care să țină cont de familie. The English Language Version of the Manifesto can be found at: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5559805, Translated into Romanian by Claudia I. Iacob and Cristina S. Trofin. This work was performed within the framework of COST Action CA19117 - "Researcher Mental Health"., {"references":["Council conclusions on \"Deepening the European Research Area: Providing researchers with attractive andsustainable careers and working conditions and making brain circulation a reality\", https://www.consilium.europa.eu/media/49980/st09138-en21.pdf","OECD. (2021). Reducing the precarity of academic research careers. https://doi.org/10.1787/0f8bd468-en","WHO, Healthy Workplace Framework and Model (2010) https://www.who.int/occupational_health/healthy_workplace_framework.pdf","ILO, Mental Health in the workplace (2010) https://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---ed_emp/---ifp_skills/documents/publication/wcms_108221.pdf","Levecque, K., et.al. (2017). Work organization and mental health problems in PhD students. Research Policy, 46(4), 868-879. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.respol.2017.02.008","Guthrie, S., et.al., Understanding mental health in the research environment: A Rapid Evidence Assessment. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation, 2017. https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RR2022.html","Barry, K. M., et.al. (2018). Psychological health of doctoral candidates, study-related challenges and perceived performance. Higher Education Research & Development, 37(3), 468-483. https://doi.org/10.1080/07294360.2018.1425979","Garcia-Williams, A. G., et.al. (2014). Mental health and suicidal behavior among graduate students. Academic psychiatry, 38(5), 554-560.https://doi.org/10.1007/s40596-014-0041-y","Mattijssen, L. M. S., Bergmans, J. E., van der Weijden, I. C. M., & Teelken, J. C. (2021). In the eye of the storm: The mental health situation of PhD candidates. Perspectives on Medical Education, 10(2), 71–72, https://doi.org/10.1007/s40037-020-00639-4","Satinsky, E. N., Kimura, T., Kiang, M. V., Abebe, R., Cunningham, S., Lee, H., Lin, X., Liu, C. H., Rudan, I., Sen, S., Tomlinson, M., Yaver, M., & Tsai, A. C. (2021). Systematic review and meta-analysis of depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation among Ph.D. students. Scientific Reports, 11(1), 14370. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-93687-7","Olsthoorn, L. H. M., Heckmann, L. A., Filippi, A., Vieira, R. M., Varanasi, R. S., Lasser, J., Bäuerle, F., Zeis, P., & Schulte-Sasse, R. (2020). Max Planck PhDnet Survey 2019 Report. Max Planck PhDNet. https://www.phdnet.mpg.de/145345/PhDnet_Survey_Report_2019.pdf","Centre for Strategy & Evaluation Services LLP (CSES), Directorate-General for Research and Innovation (European Commission), Whittle, M., & Rampton, J. (2020). Towards a 2030 vision on the future of universities in Europe. Publications Office of the European Union. https://data.europa.eu/doi/10.2777/510530","CA19117 - Researcher Mental Health Action is funded by COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology) for the period 1 November 2020 - 31 October 2024 https://www.cost.eu/actions/CA19117","Cactus Foundation Mental Health Survey. (2020). https://www.cactusglobal.com/mental-health-survey/","Initiative for Science in Europe. (2021). Position on precarity of academic careers. https://initiative-se.eu/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Research-Precarity-ISE-position.pdf","Woolston, C. (2019). PhDs: The tortuous truth. Nature, 575(7782), 403–406. https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-019-03459-7","Kismihók, G., et al.. (2019). Declaration on Sustainable Researcher Careers. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3082245","Innstrand, S. T., & Christensen, M. (2020). Healthy Universities. The development and implementation of a holistic health promotion intervention programme especially adapted for staff working in the higher educational sector: The ARK study. Global Health Promotion, 27(1), 68–76. https://doi.org/10.1177/1757975918786877","Solloway, A. (2020, September 14). Promoting a culture of wellbeing for researchers and improving the way we evaluate research [Speech]. Vitae Connections Week. https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/science-minister-at-vitae-connections-week-2020","Wellbeing and mental health lens on the Vitae Researcher Development Framework (RDF) https://www.vitae.ac.uk/vitae-publications/rdf-related/wellbeing-and-mental-health-lens/view","Woolston, C. (2020). Postdocs under pressure: 'Can I even do this any more?' Nature, 587(7835), 689–692. https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-020-03235-y","Moss, S., & Mahmoudi, M. (2021). STEM the Bullying: An Empirical Investigation of Abusive Supervision in Academic Science. SSRN Electronic Journal. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3850784","Some research communities already started developing mentoring programmes, like Referent at the Marie Curie Alumni Association https://www.mariecuriealumni.eu/referent-mentoring-initiative-msca-early-career-researchers","Devine, K., & Hunter, K. H. (2017). PhD student emotional exhaustion: The role of supportive supervision and self-presentation behaviours. Innovations in Education and Teaching International, 54(4), 335–344. https://doi.org/10.1080/14703297.2016.1174143","Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions. (2020). Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions guidelines on supervision. https://ec.europa.eu/research/mariecurieactions/node/901"]}

ReMO COST Aksiyonu, araştırmacı ruh sağlığı ve iyi oluşunun politika, kurum, topluluk ve birey düzeylerinde eylem ve inisiyatiflerle nasıl en iyi şekilde desteklenebileceğini ve sürdürülebileceğini tespit etmeye yönelik bir çağrı olan “Araştırmacı Ruh Sağlığı ve İyi Oluşu Manifestosu”nu ortaya koyan ve araştırma topluluğunun her seviyesinden bileşenlerden oluşan bir ağdır. Manifesto, araştırma ekosistemindeki tüm bileşenleri; iş-yaşam dengesini, kapsayıcılığı ve aile dostu sürdürülebilir araştırma kariyerlerini destekleyen daha kapsayıcı başarı ve kalite ölçütleri belirleyerek araştırma ortamlarında iyi oluş ve ruh sağlığını izleyen, geliştiren ve koruyan politikalar geliştirmeye çağırıyor. The English Language Version of the Manifesto can be found at: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5559805, Translated into Turkish by Mete Kurtoglu, Gökçe Gökalp, Dilara Özel, Merve Dökmeci and Murat Güneş. This work was performed within the framework of COST Action CA19117 - "Researcher Mental Health"., {"references":["Council conclusions on \"Deepening the European Research Area: Providing researchers with attractive andsustainable careers and working conditions and making brain circulation a reality\", https://www.consilium.europa.eu/media/49980/st09138-en21.pdf","OECD. (2021). Reducing the precarity of academic research careers.https://doi.org/10.1787/0f8bd468-en","WHO, Healthy Workplace Framework and Model (2010) https://www.who.int/occupational_health/healthy_workplace_framework.pdf","ILO, Mental Health in the workplace (2010) https://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---ed_emp/---ifp_skills/documents/publication/wcms_108221.pdf","Levecque, K., et.al. (2017). Work organization and mental health problems in PhD students. Research Policy, 46(4), 868-879. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.respol.2017.02.008","Guthrie, S., et.al., Understanding mental health in the research environment: A Rapid Evidence Assessment. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation, 2017. https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RR2022.html","Barry, K. M., et.al. (2018). Psychological health of doctoral candidates, study-related challenges and perceived performance. Higher Education Research & Development, 37(3), 468-483. https://doi.org/10.1080/07294360.2018.1425979","Garcia-Williams, A. G., et.al. (2014). Mental health and suicidal behavior among graduate students. Academic psychiatry, 38(5), 554-560.https://doi.org/10.1007/s40596-014-0041-y","Mattijssen, L. M. S., Bergmans, J. E., van der Weijden, I. C. M., & Teelken, J. C. (2021). In the eye of the storm: The mental health situation of PhD candidates. Perspectives on Medical Education, 10(2), 71–72, https://doi.org/10.1007/s40037-020-00639-4","Satinsky, E. N., Kimura, T., Kiang, M. V., Abebe, R., Cunningham, S., Lee, H., Lin, X., Liu, C. H., Rudan, I., Sen, S., Tomlinson, M., Yaver, M., & Tsai, A. C. (2021). Systematic review and meta-analysis of depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation among Ph.D. students. Scientific Reports, 11(1), 14370. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-93687-7","Olsthoorn, L. H. M., Heckmann, L. A., Filippi, A., Vieira, R. M., Varanasi, R. S., Lasser, J., Bäuerle, F., Zeis, P., & Schulte-Sasse, R. (2020). Max Planck PhDnet Survey 2019 Report. Max Planck PhDNet. https://www.phdnet.mpg.de/145345/PhDnet_Survey_Report_2019.pdf","Centre for Strategy & Evaluation Services LLP (CSES), Directorate-General for Research and Innovation (European Commission), Whittle, M., & Rampton, J. (2020). Towards a 2030 vision on the future of universities in Europe. Publications Office of the European Union. https://data.europa.eu/doi/10.2777/510530","CA19117 - Researcher Mental Health Action is funded by COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology) for the period 1 November 2020 - 31 October 2024 https://www.cost.eu/actions/CA19117","Cactus Foundation Mental Health Survey. (2020). https://www.cactusglobal.com/mental-health-survey/","Initiative for Science in Europe. (2021). Position on precarity of academic careers. https://initiative-se.eu/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Research-Precarity-ISE-position.pdf","Woolston, C. (2019). PhDs: The tortuous truth. Nature, 575(7782), 403–406. https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-019-03459-7","Kismihók, G., et al.. (2019). Declaration on Sustainable Researcher Careers. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3082245","Innstrand, S. T., & Christensen, M. (2020). Healthy Universities. The development and implementation of a holistic health promotion intervention programme especially adapted for staff working in the higher educational sector: The ARK study. Global Health Promotion, 27(1), 68–76. https://doi.org/10.1177/1757975918786877","Solloway, A. (2020, September 14). Promoting a culture of wellbeing for researchers and improving the way we evaluate research [Speech]. Vitae Connections Week. https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/science-minister-at-vitae-connections-week-2020","Wellbeing and mental health lens on the Vitae Researcher Development Framework (RDF) https://www.vitae.ac.uk/vitae-publications/rdf-related/wellbeing-and-mental-health-lens/view","Woolston, C. (2020). Postdocs under pressure: 'Can I even do this any more?' Nature, 587(7835), 689–692. https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-020-03235-y","Moss, S., & Mahmoudi, M. (2021). STEM the Bullying: An Empirical Investigation of Abusive Supervision in Academic Science. SSRN Electronic Journal. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3850784","Some research communities already started developing mentoring programmes, like Referent at the Marie Curie Alumni Association https://www.mariecuriealumni.eu/referent-mentoring-initiative-msca-early-career-researchers","Devine, K., & Hunter, K. H. (2017). PhD student emotional exhaustion: The role of supportive supervision and self-presentation behaviours. Innovations in Education and Teaching International, 54(4), 335–344. https://doi.org/10.1080/14703297.2016.1174143","Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions. (2020). Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions guidelines on supervision. https://ec.europa.eu/research/mariecurieactions/node/901"]}

A ReMO COST Action a nemzetközi tudományos élet különböző szintjeit képviselő résztvevők hálózata, mely a mentális egészség és jóllét kérdéseivel foglalkozik. A kutatói szférában fennálló mentális egészséggel kapcsolatos problémák fokozott jelenlétét a szakirodalom, az Európai Unió (EU) szakpolitikája, valamint más meghatározó források is kiemelik. Ennek a helyzetnek a kezelése rendszerszintű fellépést igényel makro- (szakpolitikai), mezo- (intézményi) és mikroszinten (egyén) is. A ReMO-hálózat célja annak az intézményi környezetnek a megteremtése, amely támogatja a mentális egészséget, csökkenti a mentális egészséggel kapcsolatos megbélyegzést, és képessé teszi a kutatókat egyéni, valamint munkahelyi jóllétük javítására. A kiáltvány legfontosabb ajánlásait az alábbiakban foglaljuk össze: Makroszinten: folyamatos párbeszéd valamennyi érintett féllel; szisztematikus és strukturált, empirikus alapokon nyugvó adatgyűjtés a szakpolitikai döntéshozatal érdekében; a mentális egészséggel kapcsolatos legkorszerűbb módszerek és eszközök terjesztése; az akadémiai értékelési rendszer felülvizsgálata. Mezoszinten: a mentális egészséggel és jólléttel kapcsolatos problémák felismerése; a jó gyakorlatok megosztása az intézmények között; igazságos és személyre szabott kutatói teljesítményértékelés kidolgozása; a mentális jóllét figyelembevétele a doktori képzés és az akadémiai munkavállalók professzionalizálása terén; a változást célzó kezdeményezések támogatása szervezeti szinten. Mikroszinten: az alulról jövő kezdeményezések támogatása; az egymást támogató kutatók segítése; személyközpontú megközelítés a képzés és a karriermenedzsment terén; egyéni élmények, élettörténetek gyűjtése. A ReMO-hálózat a következő lépésekkel kíván a fenti ajánlások megvalósításához hozzájárulni: i) globális vitafórum elindítása; ii) nyílt tudásközpont létrehozása; valamint iii) a kutatói jóllétet támogató nagyköveti program (ReMO Ambassador program) elindítása. A magyar fordítás az eredeti – angol – verzió alapján készült:https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5559805

At the beginning of 2020, COVID-19 became a global problem. Despite all the efforts to emphasize the relevance of preventive measures, not everyone adhered to them. Thus, learning more about the characteristics determining attitudinal and behavioral responses to the pandemic is crucial to improving future interventions. In this study, we applied machine learning on the multinational data collected by the International Collaboration on the Social and Moral Psychology of COVID-19 (N = 51,404) to test the predictive efficacy of constructs from social, moral, cognitive, and personality psychology, as well as socio-demographic factors, in the attitudinal and behavioral responses to the pandemic. The results point to several valuable insights. Internalized moral identity provided the most consistent predictive contribution—individuals perceiving moral traits as central to their self-concept reported higher adherence to preventive measures. Similar results were found for morality as cooperation, symbolized moral identity, self-control, open-mindedness, and collective narcissism, while the inverse relationship was evident for the endorsement of conspiracy theories. However, we also found a non-neglible variability in the explained variance and predictive contributions with respect to macro-level factors such as the pandemic stage or cultural region. Overall, the results underscore the importance of morality-related and contextual factors in understanding adherence to public health recommendations during the pandemic., PNAS Nexus, 1 (3), ISSN:2752-6542

Background: The literature demonstrates that working in a crisis line volunteer role, despite being rewarding, poses a risk of adverse effects on health and additional pressure exists with the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite this, there is limited research on the experiences of such volunteers. Aims: This study aimed to explore the experiences of Samaritans volunteers in Ireland during the COVID-19 pandemic, thereby contributing to the overall knowledge of crisis line volunteering, and gaining an understanding of how this role is impacted by the pandemic. Method: A qualitative approach was taken, and semi-structured interviews were conducted with volunteers from Samaritans branches in Ireland (n = 13). Data were then analysed using thematic analysis. Results: Four overarching themes were identified: (1) responding to calls in the context of COVID-19, with sub-themes being change in the nature of calls, reliance on existing approach in handling calls and varying emotional responses to calls, (2) sense of loss, with sub-themes being loss of older and vulnerable volunteers, reduced social connectedness and restricted aspects of the service, (3) positive experiences, with sub-themes being supportive culture, new personal skills and perspectives and volunteering as an escape from lockdown and (4) adaptation challenges, with sub-themes being logistical changes and concern for sustainability of the service. Conclusions: Findings highlight important insights into the experiences of Samaritans volunteers in Ireland, revealing that the pandemic brought about challenges, but also gave rise to some positive experiences. Implications of these findings are discussed in the context of the existing literature and recommendations made.

Reducing the spread of infectious viruses (such as COVID-19) can depend on societal compliance with effective mitigations. Identifying factors that influence adherence can inform public policy. In many cases public health messaging has become highly moralized, focusing on the need to act for the greater good. In such contexts, a persons’ moral identity may influence behavior and serve to increase compliance through different mechanisms; if a person sees compliance as the right thing to do (internalization) and/or if a person perceives compliance as something others will notice as the right thing to do (symbolization). We argue that in societies that are more politically polarized a person’s political ideology may interact with their moral identity to predict compliance. We hypothesized that where polarization is high (e.g., USA), moral identity should positively predict compliance for liberals to a greater extent than for conservatives. However, this effect would not occur where polarization is low (e.g., New Zealand). Moral identity, political ideology, and support for three different COVID-19 mitigation measures were assessed in both nations (N = 1980). Results show that while moral identity can influence compliance, the political context of the nation must also be taken into account.

Akcija ReMO COST je mreža zainteresiranih strani z vseh ravni raziskovalne skupnosti, ki je pripravila Program o duševnem zdravju in dobrem počutju raziskovalcev, ki poziva k oceni, kako bi lahko z ukrepi in pobudami naravni politike, institucij, skupnosti in posameznikov najbolje okrepili in ohranili duševno zdravje in dobro počutje raziskovalcev. Ta program poziva vse zainteresirane strani v raziskovalnem ekosistemu, da se vključijo v razvoj politik, ki spremljajo, izboljšujejo in ohranjajo dobro počutje in duševno zdravje v raziskovalnem okolju, določajo obsežnejše kazalnike uspeha in kakovosti, podpirajo ravnovesje med delom in zasebnim življenjem, vključenost in družinam prijazne trajnostne raziskovalne kariere. V slovenščino prevedla: Mateja Erce - InnoRenew CoE, Izola, Slovenija

The Internet offers help-seekers an abundance of resources that can potentially support their mental health. However, people often have trouble in finding personally relevant resources. Very few specialized mental health help-seeking technologies currently address this need. Instead, help-seeking typically begins with a known website or web-search. To understand how help-seeking technologies could be better designed, we conducted a study comparing existing technologies with two novel help-seeking prototypes. These prototypes were informed by empirically grounded design recommendations, which emphasize the need for connectedness, accessible and creditable information, personalization, and immediacy. Findings show that the resources recommended by current technologies are often experienced as ‘overwhelming’ or ‘overly-medicalized’. The prototypes successfully improved connectedness, immediacy, and personalization, but were less successful in their ability to support symptom-based help-seeking. Based on our findings we contribute recommendations for integrated help-seeking technologies, which can guide people to mental health resources appropriate to both their personal preferences and current level of need.

L'acció ReMO COST és una xarxa amb participants de tots els nivells de la comunitat investigadora, i ha elaborat un Manifest de salut mental i benestar dels investigadors per evaluar com es pot nodrir i mantenir la bona salut mental i el benestar dels investigadors mitjançant iniciatives a nivell polític, institucional, comunitari i individual. Aquest manifest demana que totes les parts interessades de l'ecosistema de la recerca s'impliquin en el desenvolupament de polítiques que controlin, millorin i mantinguin el benestar i la salut mental en l'entorn de la recerca, definint els indicadors d'èxit i qualitat de forma global, donant suport a l'equilibri entre la vida laboral i familiar, la inclusió, i a que les carreres professionals en recerca sigui sostenibles i compatibles amb la vida familiar i personal. &nbsp

Background Compared to the evidence base for adult populations, less is known about the effectiveness of technology-assisted CBT interventions for children aged 12 and under in real-world settings. Aims This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of a technology-assisted CBT intervention called Pesky gNATs in primary care psychology services. Methods A 2 × 3 (group by time) waitlist randomised controlled trial design was applied (n = 122), using the total internalising score from the Child Behaviour Checklist (CBCL) as the primary outcome measure; and a range of secondary outcomes. Participants were recruited from primary care services across Ireland and were assessed at baseline (Time 1), post-intervention (Time 2), and a follow-up at 3 months (Time 3). Repeated measures ANOVAs were used to analyse the data; in addition to Cohen's d for effect sizes, and the reliable change index (RCI) for clinically meaningful change. Results Overall, no significant between-group differences were found on primary or secondary measures. Both intervention and waitlist control groups experienced significantly positive change across all timepoints. However, participant retention rate at Time 2 was 66%; and fell to 44% at Time 3. Intervention group feedback from children and parent at Time 2 indicated high levels of acceptability and satisfaction with Pesky gNATs. The RCI showed a statistically significant result at Time 2: more participants from the intervention group (n = 9) moved from clinical to non-clinical levels on the primary outcome than did waitlist control participants (n = 0); but no differences were found at Time 3. Conclusion This RCT did not demonstrate that Pesky gNATs is effective in providing clinically significant levels of change for low mood and anxiety. However, participant feedback showed high levels of acceptability and positive experiences However, given the high attrition rate and implementation challenges, further research is required to ascertain the effectiveness of technology-assisted CBT interventions such as Pesky gNATs., Highlights • Some evidence suggests that technology-assisted CBT is an effective way to address psychological problems in a range of populations, but less is known about effectiveness with children. • This study used a waitlist control RCT to assess the effectiveness of a computerised CBT game (Pesky gNATs) in primary care psychology services in Ireland (n=122) for children aged 12 and under experiencing low mood and anxiety • No significant between-group differences were observed across primary and secondary measures • Both child and parent feedback demonstrated high levels of acceptance and satisfaction with the intervention • Results are discussed in the context of the high attrition recorded, implementation challenges, and future research pathways

The ReMO COST Action is a network of stakeholders from all levels of the research community that has drafted a Researcher Mental Health and Well-being Manifesto that calls for the assessment of how the mental health and well-being of researchers can best be nourished and sustained through actions and initiatives at the policy, institutional, community and individual levels. This manifesto calls for all stakeholders in the research ecosystem to engage in developing policies that monitor, improve, and maintain well-being and mental health in the research environment, delineating more encompassing metrics of success and quality, supporting work-life balance, inclusiveness, and family-friendly sustainable research careers. The Researcher Mental Health and Well-being Manifesto has been translated into many languages in order to more effectively raise awareness of mental health in academia in many countries: Language Translators Link Albanian Ornela Bardhi; Melina Kello; Hyrije Bardhi https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7533475 Arabic Mohamad Nadim ADI; Mais M. ALJUNAIDY https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5761750 Bulgarian Svetlana Dimitrova; Stefan Spiridonov https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7524579 Catalan Elena Redondo Castro https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5789459 English https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5559805 French Ariel Frajerman; Mathieu Fusi; Aura Fossati https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7716117 Greek Adrian Stavrakis https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7341668 Hungarian Vita Emese; Rusu Szidónia; Ugrin Zsuzsanna; Kovács Karolina Eszter; Solymosi Katalin; Gábor Kismihók; https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7312008 Italian Maddalena Fumagalli; Cristina Miceli; Anna Maria Eleuteri; Aura Fossati https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7345732 Portuguese Carolina Oliveira Borges; Inês Gaspar; Francisco Valente Gonçalves https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7516221 Romanian Claudia I Iacob; Cristina S. Trofin https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7339678 Russian Levchenko, Serhii https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7387245 Serbian Ivana B. Petrović, Milica Vukelić, Selma Talić Pantelić, Dubravka Vlahović, Milena Ratković-Fehilly, Radenka Krsmanović Whiffen, and Miroslav Trajanovići https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7516851 Slovenian Mateja Erce https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5814951 Spanish Luisa F. Echeverría King; Fernando G. Benavides; Elena Ronda; Antonio Ariza-Montes; Horacio Molina-Sánchez https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5750506 Turkish Mete Kurtoglu; Gökçe Gökalp; Dilara Özel; Merve Dökmeci https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7338402 Ukrainian Levchenko, Serhii https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7386660 &nbsp

عبارة عن شبكة من أصحاب المصلحة من جميع مستويات المجتمع البحثي التي قامت بصياغة بيان للباحث عن الصحة العقلية والرفاهية والذي يدعو إلى تقييم أفضل طريقة لتغذية واستدامة الصحة العقلية للباحثين ورفاهيتهم من خلال الإجراءات والمبادرات على مستوى السياسات والمؤسسات والمجتمعات والأفراد. يدعو هذا البيان جميع أصحاب المصلحة في النظام البحثي إلى المشاركة في تطوير السياسات التي ترصد وتحسن وتحافظ على الرفاهية والصحة العقلية في بيئة البحث ، وتحديد مقاييس أكثر شمولاً للنجاح والجودة ، ودعم التوازن بين العمل والحياة ، والشمولية ، والوظائف البحثية المستدامة الصديقة للأسرة.

La Acción ReMO del programa COST es una red de colaboradores de todos los niveles de la comunidad científica que ha redactado un Manifiesto sobre la salud mental y el bienestar de los investigadores que requiere la evaluación sobre cómo se pueden nutrir y fomentar de la mejor forma la salud mental y el bienestar, a través de acciones e iniciativas a nivel político, institucional, comunitario e individual. Este manifiesto solicita a todos los grupos de interés en el ecosistema científico que se impliquen en el desarrollo de políticas que supervisen, mejoren y mantengan el bienestar y la salud mental en el entorno de la investigación, diseñando indicadores más amplios sobre el éxito y la calidad, que apoyen el equilibrio entre la vida laboral y la personal, la inclusión y carreras de investigación sostenibles y favorables para la familia.

Background In 2017, the unprecedented blockade of Qatar by neighboring Gulf states caused a plethora of effects on the country at a psychological, socio-political, and identity level. This paper sought to examine the resulting psychological effects of this blockade in Qatar but with a focus on the younger population. Methods Using self-report questionnaire data from Qatari secondary school students (n = 1410), a multiple regression model investigated the predictive effects of youth self-esteem, national identity, and perceived threat on the well-being of students. Results The model predicted 23.9% of the variance in the overall dataset. The results indicated that the model was a significant predictor of well-being, F (3, 1406) = 148.35, p = .000. While self-esteem significantly contributed to the model (B = .473, p = .000), as did perceived threat (B = − .058, p = 0.013); Qatari identity did not display a significant predictive effect (B = .040, p = .089). Conclusions In the context of the conflict, perceived threat and self-esteem play a crucial role in predicting youth wellbeing.

The COVID-19 pandemic has intensified the need for mental health support across the whole spectrum of the population. Where global demand outweighs the supply of mental health services, established interventions such as cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) have been adapted from traditional face-to-face interaction to technology-assisted formats. One such notable development is the emergence of Artificially Intelligent (AI) conversational agents for psychotherapy. Pre-pandemic, these adaptations had demonstrated some positive results; but they also generated debate due to a number of ethical and societal challenges. This article commences with a critical overview of both positive and negative aspects concerning the role of AI-CBT in its present form. Thereafter, an ethical framework is applied with reference to the themes of (1) beneficence, (2) non-maleficence, (3) autonomy, (4) justice, and (5) explicability. These themes are then discussed in terms of practical recommendations for future developments. Although automated versions of therapeutic support may be of appeal during times of global crises, ethical thinking should be at the core of AI-CBT design, in addition to guiding research, policy, and real-world implementation as the world considers post-COVID-19 society.

The Child Sexual Exploitation Material Pathways Tool (CPT) is a case formulation tool that guides a systematic exploration of the learning history, current personal situation, and offending behaviour of individuals who have been arrested, cautioned, and/or sentenced for accessing, downloading, distributing, and/or sharing of child sexual exploitation material. Based on the RE-AIM principles, a feasibility study was conducted to test the integration of the CPT as part of a community treatment group in comparison to treatment-as-usual. Based on qualitative feedback from the participants and group facilitators and a series of psychometric tests administered before, during, and after the treatment, the study evidenced that participants (and service staff) can be successfully recruited for this intervention, that the intervention has perceived positive effects, and that it can be integrated into treatment-as-usual. The study also highlighted relevant contextual critical issues in the quantitative evaluation of feasibility studies in a forensic context and with regards to the CPT specifically information, most notably the impact of self-reported sexual interest in children on treatment engagement. Limitations of the study are the small sample size and the number of drop-outs over time. Findings are discussed with regards to planned revisions to the CPT and research developments towards a randomised controlled trial.

BACKGROUND Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for young people is increasingly being provided using technology-assisted formats. Although there is increasing evidence regarding the efficacy of such approaches, as illustrated by quantitative systematic reviews, the literature has also highlighted challenges with implementation factors, including high attrition rates and variable user engagement. Qualitative review methods can help to address the factors that impact young peoples’ experience of technology-assisted cognitive behavioral therapy (tech-assisted CBT) and, thus, enable us to better understand such implementation factors. To date, no such qualitative synthesis exists. OBJECTIVE The primary aim of this review was to systematically identify and synthesize the qualitative literature concerning the experiences of young people who have used tech-assisted CBT. METHODS This systematic review applied Thomas and Harden’s 2008 qualitative thematic synthesis approach. This involved line-by-line coding of the results sections of included studies and an inductive analysis on identified themes, followed by the generation of analytical themes through a process of iteration and interpretation of the descriptive themes. PsycINFO, ACM Digital Library, PubMed, EMBASE, and JMIR Publications databases were searched. The inclusion criteria were (1) studies involving school-aged young people over preschool age (6 years) but under the age of 18 years, (2) use of any form of tech-assisted CBT for any time period, (3) a stated focus of qualitative data to document the experiences of participants, and (4) studies published in English. The exclusion criteria were (1) interventions only provided face-to-face with no technological component, (2) only focused on the performance of the technology rather than participant experience, and (3) numerical data that sought to represent qualitative data. RESULTS A total of 14 studies were included in this review. Overall, these studies represented interventions for low mood and anxiety (n=10), trauma or self-harm (n=2), and physical difficulties (n=2). Overall, 5 analytical themes emerged on young people’s experiences with tech-assisted CBT: (1) helpfulness, (2) therapeutic process, (3) transferability, (4) gameplay experience, and (5) limitations. In addition, these analytical themes contained the following subthemes: positive experiences, tech-assisted CBT versus face-to-face CBT, understanding of a CBT model, process of change, skills development, application to everyday life settings, parental involvement, character relatedness, playability, negative experiences, and broad content. CONCLUSIONS Overall, young people’s experiences with tech-assisted CBT were mostly positive. The use of gaming environments, relatable characters, concrete metaphors, and age-appropriate narratives contributed to these positive experiences. Evidence suggests that technology can help to mediate face-to-face relationships with therapists and help young people to understand the CBT model. Clear barriers also emerged, including over-reliance on reading and writing skills and dissatisfaction with overly generalized content and comparison with commercial technologies.

Background Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for young people is increasingly being provided using technology-assisted formats. Although there is increasing evidence regarding the efficacy of such approaches, as illustrated by quantitative systematic reviews, the literature has also highlighted challenges with implementation factors, including high attrition rates and variable user engagement. Qualitative review methods can help to address the factors that impact young peoples’ experience of technology-assisted cognitive behavioral therapy (tech-assisted CBT) and, thus, enable us to better understand such implementation factors. To date, no such qualitative synthesis exists. Objective The primary aim of this review was to systematically identify and synthesize the qualitative literature concerning the experiences of young people who have used tech-assisted CBT. Methods This systematic review applied Thomas and Harden’s 2008 qualitative thematic synthesis approach. This involved line-by-line coding of the results sections of included studies and an inductive analysis on identified themes, followed by the generation of analytical themes through a process of iteration and interpretation of the descriptive themes. PsycINFO, ACM Digital Library, PubMed, EMBASE, and JMIR Publications databases were searched. The inclusion criteria were (1) studies involving school-aged young people over preschool age (6 years) but under the age of 18 years, (2) use of any form of tech-assisted CBT for any time period, (3) a stated focus of qualitative data to document the experiences of participants, and (4) studies published in English. The exclusion criteria were (1) interventions only provided face-to-face with no technological component, (2) only focused on the performance of the technology rather than participant experience, and (3) numerical data that sought to represent qualitative data. Results A total of 14 studies were included in this review. Overall, these studies represented interventions for low mood and anxiety (n=10), trauma or self-harm (n=2), and physical difficulties (n=2). Overall, 5 analytical themes emerged on young people’s experiences with tech-assisted CBT: (1) helpfulness, (2) therapeutic process, (3) transferability, (4) gameplay experience, and (5) limitations. In addition, these analytical themes contained the following subthemes: positive experiences, tech-assisted CBT versus face-to-face CBT, understanding of a CBT model, process of change, skills development, application to everyday life settings, parental involvement, character relatedness, playability, negative experiences, and broad content. Conclusions Overall, young people’s experiences with tech-assisted CBT were mostly positive. The use of gaming environments, relatable characters, concrete metaphors, and age-appropriate narratives contributed to these positive experiences. Evidence suggests that technology can help to mediate face-to-face relationships with therapists and help young people to understand the CBT model. Clear barriers also emerged, including over-reliance on reading and writing skills and dissatisfaction with overly generalized content and comparison with commercial technologies. Trial Registration International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO) CRD42018103388; https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?ID=CRD42018103388

The phenomenon of men who travel across international borders to engage in child sexual abuse presents significant public health, legal, diplomatic, cultural, and research challenges. Briefed in the current scope of this issue by relevant stakeholders across legislation, research, and social policy, a roundtable discussion held in London aimed to synthesise plenary discussions from multidisciplinary attendees across law enforcement, academia, non-profit, and industry sectors with direct relevance to the UK. Specifically, the roundtable discussions aimed to gather the central themes relating to attendee discussions on the key challenges, affected countries, response strategies, and knowledge gaps. Four key themes were identified from the data, relating to the definition of Transnational Child Sexual Abuse (TCSA), criminal justice, geographical considerations, and issues surrounding tourism/hospitality. The data highlighted four priorities for future development and research, namely developing offender typologies, victim-centric investigative practice, prevalence and definitions, and collaborations. These themes provide insight into the issue of transnational child sexual abuse from the perspective of different disciplines and offer a strategy to prioritise, and collaborate, in the efforts against transnational child sexual abuse.

BACKGROUND Recent research has highlighted naturalistic uptake as a key barrier to maximizing the impact of mental health technologies. Although there is increasing evidence regarding the efficacy of digital interventions for mental health, as demonstrated through randomized controlled trials, there is also evidence that technologies do not succeed as expected when deployed in real-world settings. OBJECTIVE This paper describes the naturalistic deployment of Pesky gNATs, a computer game designed to support cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for children experiencing anxiety or low mood. The objective of this deployment study was to identify how therapists use Pesky gNATs in real-world settings and to discover positive and negative factors. On the basis of this, we aimed to derive generalizable recommendations for the development of mental health technologies that can have greater impact in real-world settings. METHODS Pesky gNATs has been made available through a not-for-profit organization. After 18 months of use, we collected usage and user experience data from therapists who used the game. Data were collected through an online survey and semistructured interviews addressing the expectations and experiences of both therapists and young people. Thematic analysis was used to identify key themes in the interview and survey data. RESULTS A total of 21 therapists, who used Pesky gNATs with 95 young people, completed the online survey. Furthermore, 5 therapists participated in the follow-up interview. Confirming previous assessments, data suggest that the game can be helpful in delivering therapy and that young people generally liked the approach. Therapists shared diverse opinions regarding the young people for whom they deemed the game appropriate. The following 3 themes were identified: (1) stages of use, (2) impact on the delivery of therapy, and (3) customization. We discuss therapists’ reflections on the game with regard to their work practices and consider the question of customization, including the delicate balance of adaptable interaction versus the need for fidelity to a therapeutic model. CONCLUSIONS This study provides further evidence that therapeutic games can support the delivery of CBT for young people in real-world settings. It also shows that deployment studies can provide a valuable means of understanding how technologies integrate with the overall mental health ecosystem and become a part of therapists' toolbox. Variability in use should be expected in real-world settings. Effective training, support for therapist autonomy, careful consideration of different approaches to customization, the reporting of deployment data, and support for communities of practice can play an important role in supporting variable, but effective, use.