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Child / Adolescent - Depression

(PS3-39) Perceived Helpfulness and Intention to Use Therapy Skills among Adolescents in an Intensive Outpatient Program

Friday, November 21, 2025
3:00 PM - 4:00 PM CST
Location: Elite Hall A, Level 1
Abstract Text: In the United States, suicide is the second leading cause of death in adolescents, aged 15-19. Between 2007 and 2021, the CDC reported a 62% increase in suicide among individuals aged 10-24. Despite ongoing attempts to prevent adolescent suicide, the rates continue to rise, indicating a need for effective interventions. Adolescents with suicidal ideation and behaviors have historically been treated in inpatient settings; however, the development of alternative options and lower levels of care are necessary to help treat the growing problem. Children’s Health IOP was developed in response to this need with positive outcomes. Notably, the acquisition and use of therapy skills are not regularly measured in treatment studies for mood symptoms and suicidality with youth. In our program, it is unclear which skills participants find most helpful and intend to use in the future. Additionally, the relations between these preferences and treatment outcomes remain unclear. Thus, the current study aimed to: 1) assess the perceived helpfulness of each skill, 2) determine the percentage of participants that intend to use each skill after program completion, 3) examine if attitudes towards the skills vary by age or sex assigned at birth, and 4) determine whether participant attitudes towards the skills are related to treatment outcomes at follow up. We report on patients (N = 1609) who completed self-report questionnaires at intake, discharge, and one-month and six-month follow ups. Patients reported their age, sex at birth, perceived helpfulness of the skills (ranged from 1 = not helpful to 3 = helpful), and intention to use skills in the future (1 = no, 2 = yes) as well as the number of suicide attempts, inpatient hospitalizations, and emergency room visits following program completion. We conducted descriptive analyses, correlation analyses, chi-square analyses, and Benjamini-Hochberg corrections for multiple comparisons. On average, participants rated all skills as moderately helpful. Safety planning had the lowest average helpfulness rating with a mean of 2.27 (SD = 0.76) and behavioral activation had the highest average helpfulness rating with a mean of 2.57 (SD = 0.65).  Across all skills, the majority of participants indicated they intend to use the skills in the future. Problem solving had the lowest percentage (73.6%; n = 911) of likely usage while behavioral activation had the highest percentage (87.4%, n = 1094) of intent to use the skill. After correcting for multiple comparisons, correlation analyses indicated perceived helpfulness was unrelated to age, and treatment outcomes at one- and six-month follow ups across all skills. However, analyses indicated participants born female at birth rated safety planning, r(792) = .13, p = .005, emotion regulation, r(792) = .11, p = .005, problem solving r(792) = .10, p = .007, social support, r(791) = .10, p = .007, validation r(791) = .09, p = .020, hope r(791) = .08, p = .033, and behavioral activation, r(792) = .08, p = .045, as more helpful than their male counterparts. After correcting for multiple comparisons, analyses indicated intention to use skills was unrelated to age, sex assigned at birth, and treatment outcomes at one- and six-month follow ups across all skills.