Impact of Behavioral Activation Therapy on Neurobiological Markers of Depression in Adolescents: A Pilot Study

Adolescents today suffer from depression due to a range of environmental factors, which have a negative impact on their social, physical, psychological, and cognitive development. This study aims to assess the impact of behavioral activation therapy on neurobiological markers of depression in adolescents.

This study was carried out on school-going adolescents after obtaining informed voluntary consent. 20 adolescents (14-16 years) with mild and moderate depression based on Beck's Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) were randomly assigned to control and experimental groups, equally. Behavioral activation therapy was given for 1 month, consisting of mood elevation, problem-solving, social skill development, and healthy behavior, while control was given routine care. Post-test was done using BDI-II for both groups. BMI and salivary cortisol were measured as neurobiological markers for both groups in the pre- and post-test. Data were analyzed through inferential statistics.

Data revealed there is no significant difference in the groups (control and experimental) (P = .571), no significant difference in tests (pre- and post-test) (P = .244), and a significant interaction (group X test) (P = .298). Multiple comparisons found no significant difference between control and experimental pretests (between groups) (P = .356) or control and experimental post-tests (P = .9). There was no significant difference between the control pre- and post-test (within groups) (P = .125) or the experimental pre- and post-test (P = .926).

Behavioral activation treatment helps to reduce depression among adolescents.