Promoting Mental Health in Young Children - a Dialogue Based Approach in Kindergartens

NCT ID: NCT06471816

Last Updated: 2025-10-01

Study Results

Results pending

The study team has not published outcome measurements, participant flow, or safety data for this trial yet. Check back later for updates.

Basic Information

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Recruitment Status

RECRUITING

Clinical Phase

NA

Total Enrollment

200 participants

Study Classification

INTERVENTIONAL

Study Start Date

2024-01-01

Study Completion Date

2029-06-30

Brief Summary

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The goal of this clinical trial is to learn if the novel Dialogue Based Early Detection (DBED) method can prevent impaired mental health in kindergarten children. It will also learn about the screening properties of DBED to identify children with impaired mental health, if DBED facilitates early interventions, and if DBED is well accepted and sustainable in an ordinary kindergarten setting.

The main questions it aims to answer are:

* Do children in kindergartens where DBED is implemented develop better mental health scores than children in kindergarten where DBED is not implemented?
* How well identifies DBED kindergarten children with impaired mental health compared to a traditional screening instrument (the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire)?
* What is the impact of DBED on activation of interventions for mental health problems?
* What is the social validity of DBED?

Researchers will compare outcomes in kindergartens where DBED is implemented with outcomes in kindergartens where it's not.

* During the last three years of kindergarten attendance participants (parents of kindergarten children) in the intervention kindergartens will take part in the biannual DBED parent-teacher meetings, while participants in the control kindergartens will take part in traditional parent-teacher meetings.
* Twice a year all participants will answer questionnaires of the child's mental health and parental stress during the follow-up period (3 years in kindergarten and 2 first years in school).
* Participants in the intervention kindergartens will answer user satisfaction questionnaires after every parent-teacher meeting.
* The kindergarten teachers will report on type and time of supportive interventions for each participating child during the follow-up period in kindergarten.

Detailed Description

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Conditions

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Child Behavior Child Development

Study Design

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Allocation Method

RANDOMIZED

Intervention Model

PARALLEL

Kindergartens from three different organisations are involved. The kindergartens are randomized to the implementation or control condition within each organisation (block randomization).
Primary Study Purpose

PREVENTION

Blinding Strategy

NONE

Study Groups

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Intervention kindergartens

Participants (parents of kindergarten children) will take part in the biannual DBED parent-teacher meetings.

Group Type EXPERIMENTAL

Dialogue Based Early Detection

Intervention Type OTHER

Before the biannual parent-teacher meeting, both the kindergarten teacher and the parents will complete the Early Worry Questionnaire containing 39 items related to development and well-being of the individual child. For each item the respondents are asked to indicate if they during the last three months have been concerned. In the parent-teacher meeting they will discuss their possible concerns and try to reach an agreement on how to evaluate the child. If necessary, possible supportive interventions or further assessments locally in the kindergarten or in the public services will be decided.

Control kindergartens

Participants (parents of kindergarten children) will take part in traditional parent-teacher meetings.

Group Type ACTIVE_COMPARATOR

Traditional parent-teacher meeting

Intervention Type OTHER

This is an annual or biannual meeting that is prepared by the kindergarten teacher where (s)he reports on the child's appearance / behaviour and possible challenges as to development and behaviour from an educationalist's view. There are no common templates for the agenda of such meetings, however, usually the kindergarten teacher's perspective and opinion will dominate.

Interventions

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Dialogue Based Early Detection

Before the biannual parent-teacher meeting, both the kindergarten teacher and the parents will complete the Early Worry Questionnaire containing 39 items related to development and well-being of the individual child. For each item the respondents are asked to indicate if they during the last three months have been concerned. In the parent-teacher meeting they will discuss their possible concerns and try to reach an agreement on how to evaluate the child. If necessary, possible supportive interventions or further assessments locally in the kindergarten or in the public services will be decided.

Intervention Type OTHER

Traditional parent-teacher meeting

This is an annual or biannual meeting that is prepared by the kindergarten teacher where (s)he reports on the child's appearance / behaviour and possible challenges as to development and behaviour from an educationalist's view. There are no common templates for the agenda of such meetings, however, usually the kindergarten teacher's perspective and opinion will dominate.

Intervention Type OTHER

Eligibility Criteria

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Inclusion Criteria

* Attendance in kindergarten
* Inclusion during the first half-year of the third last year in kindergarten

Exclusion Criteria

* Parents don't communicate in Norwegian or English
Minimum Eligible Age

2 Years

Maximum Eligible Age

3 Years

Eligible Sex

ALL

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Sponsors

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University of Bergen

OTHER

Sponsor Role collaborator

Western Norway University of Applied Sciences

OTHER

Sponsor Role collaborator

Haukeland University Hospital

OTHER

Sponsor Role lead

Responsible Party

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Responsibility Role SPONSOR

Principal Investigators

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Ingvar Bjelland, PhD

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Haukeland University Hospital

Randi-Luise Møgster, MD

Role: STUDY_DIRECTOR

Haukeland University Hospital

Locations

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Haukeland University Hospital

Bergen, , Norway

Site Status RECRUITING

Eventus Barnehage AS

Bergen, , Norway

Site Status RECRUITING

Øygarden municipality

Straume, , Norway

Site Status RECRUITING

Countries

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Norway

Central Contacts

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Ingvar Bjelland, PhD

Role: CONTACT

+47 909 55 893

Gro J Wergeland, PhD

Role: CONTACT

+47 481 76 828

Facility Contacts

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Hilde M Ersvær

Role: primary

+47 404 90 226

Ingvar Bjelland, PhD

Role: backup

+47 909 55 893

Thomas Hopland

Role: primary

+47 959 92 323

Remi Kaldhussæter

Role: backup

+47 918 73 025

Trond Heggestad

Role: primary

+47 917 15 563

Kjersti S Sundal

Role: backup

+47 924 59 375

References

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Bjelland I, Wergeland GJ, Gillberg C, Gjestad R, Visnjic-Jevtic A, Lisaeth VK, Miniscalco C, Tufta ALF, Vermeer IL, Sadownik AR, Wilson P, Posserud MB. PRO-DIALOG-the effect of a novel dialogue-based parent-teacher conference on mental health in kindergarten children: a cluster randomized controlled trial. Trials. 2025 Aug 21;26(1):299. doi: 10.1186/s13063-025-08980-x.

Reference Type DERIVED
PMID: 40842037 (View on PubMed)

Related Links

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http://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychiatry/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2022.696531/full

Paper that describes the development of the intervention / method under study in PRO-DIALOG

Other Identifiers

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151749

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id

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