School-Based Prevention and Early Intervention Programs for Depression

Abstract

The risk of developing a depressive disorder increases with age during this period, with rates of depression amongst adolescents comparable to the lifetime prevalence rates reported in the adult population, and is one of the leading causes of disease burden in children and adolescents aged 10–24 years. The school setting provides an opportune environment in which to target all individuals, particularly those with elevated symptoms of depression who may not have sought help yet or been identified as being symptomatic, those at risk of developing symptoms due to external stressors or internal vulnerabilities, those with sub-threshold symptoms of depression and those who are asymptomatic but who may develop symptoms in the future. School-based programs can also reduce and alleviate many of the common barriers to treatment in the community, such as cost, location, time, transportation and stigmatisation by offering low-cost, convenient and non-threatening alternatives.