Up To Me: Erasing the Stigma of Mental Illness on College Campuses

Summary

This is a three-lesson, disclosure-based stigma reduction program meant to reduce barriers to community living and participation for college students with psychiatric disabilities. The goal is to improve community living and participation of individuals with psychiatric disabilities within their postsecondary community using the Honest Open Proud (HOP) program. There are 3 specific objectives of the project:1) evaluate program fidelity, 2) assess program feasibility, and 3) conduct a randomized controlled trial of the HOP program with college students with mental illness to examine its efficacy. Anticipated outcomes include increases in 1) community integration, 2)self-esteem and self-efficacy, 3) empowerment and self-determination, 4) disclosure of mental illness in order to obtain needed support, and 5) care seeking/service engagement for mental illness. Ultimately, we expect to see increased academic persistence and achievement among HOP program completers.

Conditions

• Mental Illness
• Behavior Disorders
• Severe Mental Illness
• Psychiatric Diagnosis
• Psychiatric Diseases
• Psychiatric Disorders
• Psychiatric Illness

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

Up To Me Intervention + No Booster

Participants will complete two-hour sessions once a week over three weeks in which they complete modules in the Up To Me Workbook. These sessions are facilitated by a peer facilitator and a member of the USF Counseling center. Other members in the group sessions are university students who are peers who are also experiencing some form of shame around their mental health challenges.

BEHAVIORAL

Up To Me Intervention + Booster

In addition to the Up To Me Intervention, participants also complete a booster/additional session where additional topics of the Up To Me workbook are covered. This additional session occurs four weeks after the completion of the third session.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research

  collaborator FED

• Temple University

  collaborator OTHER

• Illinois Institute of Technology

  collaborator OTHER

• University of South Florida

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Kristin Kosyluk · University of South Florida

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

SUPPORTIVE_CARE

Masking

NONE

Model

SEQUENTIAL

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2022-03-07

Primary Completion

2024-03-30

Completion

2024-03-30

Countries

• United States

Study Locations