The First Megastudy of Mental Health Interventions “Uplift the Web Challenge” Seeks Innovative Solutions for Depression through Global Call for Submissions
Pictured above: Benji Kaveladze, PhD the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine Postdoctoral Fellow leading the project.
March 8, 2024
The Uplift the Web Challenge, a groundbreaking initiative of the Lab for Scalable Mental Health in the Department of Medical Social Sciences (MSS) at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine aimed at identifying effective online interventions for depression, is now open for submissions until May 1, 2024. This collaborative endeavor invites anyone worldwide to submit an online intervention lasting less than 10 minutes. The challenge seeks to address the pressing need for accessible mental health support by conducting one of the largest randomized experiments in the history of mental health research.
Depression is a significant global issue, and few have access to high-quality help. Recognizing this, the Uplift the Web Challenge team aims to rigorously test 11 scalable interventions for depression, with the potential to reach millions of people. Similar scientific crowdsourcing efforts have explored strengthening democratic values and improving fitness behaviors, but this will be the first megastudy of mental health interventions.
The Lab for Scalable Mental Health, led by Jessica Schleider, PhD and housed in MSS is organizing the challenge. “We're thrilled to launch the Uplift the Web Challenge" said Benji Kaveladze, PhD the postdoctoral fellow who is leading the project. "By crowdsourcing diverse perspectives and rigorously evaluating their effectiveness, we can identify promising new ideas and make meaningful strides in addressing this critical issue."
Individuals interested in participating or learning more about the challenge are encouraged to visit the official website. For inquiries and further information, please contact the Uplift the Web team at uplift.the.web@gmail.com.
About Uplift the Web Challenge: The Uplift the Web Challenge brings together academics and practitioners in a collective effort to identify effective interventions to reduce depression in adults. Through a global call for submissions, the Challenge aims to gather promising short interventions for rigorous evaluation in one of the largest randomized experiments in mental health research history.