Kyoto University conducted a large study involving nearly 4,000 Japanese adults with subclinical depression — a condition in which symptoms already reduce quality of life but do not reach the threshold for a clinical diagnosis. Most of these people do not receive traditional treatment.
The mobile app RESiLIENT was tested. It included five brief psychotherapy techniques: behavioral activation, working with negative thoughts, problem-solving skills, methods of self-expression, and sleep improvement. The contribution of each was assessed separately. Participants spent 20 to 60 minutes a week on the exercises.
After six weeks, all methods showed statistically significant improvement compared with the control group, and the effect persisted for six months. Behavioral activation produced the most pronounced result. Eighty-four percent of participants completed the program, which is significantly higher than the average completion rate for online therapy.
The authors note that the data are based on self-reports and apply primarily to the adult population of Japan. Even so, this is one of the most serious and large-scale studies of digital prevention for mild depression to date. Such accessible methods could become an effective tool for early support.
