Can an Evidence-Based Mental Health Intervention Indirectly Benefit Caregivers and Peers of Intervention Participants in Rural Sierra Leone?

This study explored potential indirect mental health benefits of the Youth Readiness Intervention (YRI) among peers and caregivers of YRI participants and control participants via a networks psychometrics approach. We recruited and enrolled index participants who participated in an implementation trial in Sierra Leone (N = 165 control index participants; N = 165 YRI index participants). Index participants nominated three of their closest peers (N = 879) and one cohabitating caregiver (N = 284) to complete quantitative assessments on mental health and functioning. We used network psychometrics to explore patterns of association between mental health outcomes and risk/protective factors among YRI participants’ peers and caregivers and those of non-participants. Models of network structures showed several strong associations between mental health symptoms and risk/protective factors. There was a strong association between higher social support and positive coping skills. Additionally, models reflected stronger associations between higher depression symptoms and worse emotion regulation for peers of non-participants only. For caregivers of non-participants, a higher burden of care was strongly associated with worse emotion regulation, which was associated with higher levels of depression and anxiety. On a broader scale, the findings may provide support for wider societal benefits that evidence-based mental health interventions can offer in resource-constrained settings.