JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

Stress-related mental disorders are highly prevalent and pose a significant burden on individuals and society. Improving strategies for the prevention and treatment of mental disorders necessitates a better understanding of their risk and resilience factors. This multi-center study aims to contribute to this endeavor by investigating psychological resilience in healthy, but vulnerable young adults over nine months. Resilience is conceptualized in this study as maintenance of mental health or quick recovery from mental health perturbations upon exposure to stressors, assessed longitudinally via frequent monitoring of stressors and mental health.

Objective:

We aim to investigate factors predicting, and adaptive processes and mechanisms contributing to mental resilience, and to provide a methodological and evidence-based framework for later intervention studies.

Methods:

In a multi-center setting, across five research sites, a sample with a total target size of N=250 male and female young adults was assessed longitudinally over nine months. Participants were included if they reported at least three past stressful life events and an elevated level of (internalizing) mental health problems, while not presently affected by any mental disorder other than mild depression. At baseline, sociodemographic, psychological, neuropsychological, structural and functional brain imaging, salivary cortisol and alpha-amylase, as well as cardiovascular data were acquired. In a six-month longitudinal phase I, bi-weekly online monitoring of stressor exposure, mental health problems, and perceived positive appraisal style took place, as well as monthly one-week ecological momentary assessments (EMA) and ecological physiological assessments (EPA). In a subsequent three-month longitudinal phase II, online monitoring was reduced to once a month, and psychological resilience and risk factors were assessed again at the end of the nine-month period. In addition, samples for genetic, epigenetic, and microbiome analyses were collected at baseline, month 3, and month 6. As an approximation of resilience, an individual stressor reactivity (SR) score will be calculated. Using regularized regression methods, network modeling, ordinary differential equations, landmarking methods, and neural net-based methods for imputation and dimension reduction, we will identify predictors and mechanisms of SR and thus be able to identify resilience factors and mechanisms that facilitate adaptation to stressors.

Results:

Participant inclusion started in October 2020 and data acquisition was completed in June 2022.

Conclusions:

The DynaM-OBS study provides a methodological framework and dataset to identify predictors and mechanisms of mental resilience, which are intended to serve as an empirical foundation for future intervention studies.