A Climbing (Bouldering) Intervention to Increase the Psychological Well-Being of Adolescents in the Bekaa Valley in Lebanon-Study Protocol for a Controlled Trial

Katharina Luttenberger; Charbel Najem; Simon Rosenbaum; Charles Sifri; Leona Kind; Beat Baggenstos

doi:10.3390/ijerph20054289

A Climbing (Bouldering) Intervention to Increase the Psychological Well-Being of Adolescents in the Bekaa Valley in Lebanon-Study Protocol for a Controlled Trial

Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2023 Feb 28;20(5):4289. doi: 10.3390/ijerph20054289.

Authors

Katharina Luttenberger¹, Charbel Najem^{2

3}, Simon Rosenbaum⁴, Charles Sifri⁵, Leona Kind¹, Beat Baggenstos⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department Medical Psychology and Medical Sociology, Faculty of Medicine, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, 91054 Erlangen, Germany.
² Spine, Head and Pain Research Unit Ghent, Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Ghent University, 9052 Ghent, Belgium.
³ Department of Physiotherapy, Faculty of Public Health, Antonine University, Baabda, Lebanon.
⁴ Discipline of Psychiatry and Mental Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health, UNSW, Sydney 2052, Australia.
⁵ ClimbAID Lebanon, Branch of ClimbAID, 8048 Zurich, Switzerland.

Abstract

(1) Background: Adolescent refugees in Lebanon and Lebanese youth are both at high risk of suffering from reduced psychological well-being. Sport is an evidence-based strategy for improving mental and physical health, and climbing is a type of sport that may positively impact both. The aim of this study is to test the effect of a manualized, psychosocial group climbing intervention on the well-being, distress, self-efficacy, and social cohesion of adolescents in Lebanon. In addition, the mechanisms behind psychological changes will be investigated. (2) Methods: In this mixed-methods waitlist-controlled study, we are allocating a minimum of 160 participants to an intervention (IG) or a control group (CG). The primary outcome is overall mental well-being (WEMWBS) after the 8-week intervention. Secondary outcomes include distress symptoms (K-6 Distress Scale), self-efficacy (General Self-Efficacy Scale; GSE), and social cohesion. Potential mechanisms of change and implementation factors are being investigated through qualitative interviews with a subgroup of 40 IG participants. (3) Conclusions: The results may contribute to knowledge of sports interventions and their effects on psychological well-being and will provide insights regarding low-intensity interventions for supporting adolescent refugees and host populations in conflict-affected settings. The study was prospectively registered at the ISRCTN platform (current-controlled trials). ISRCTN13005983.

Keywords: adolescent mental health; bouldering/climbing; intervention studies; physical activity; refugees.

Publication types

Clinical Trial Protocol
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Adolescent
Anxiety
Humans
Lebanon
Mental Health
Psychological Well-Being*
Refugees* / psychology
Self Efficacy

Grants and funding

This work is supported by the Mammut Sports Group AG, Birren 5, Seon Switzerland, which funded ClimbAID’s costs of the study and therapeutic personnel in Lebanon (B.B.). The funding body has no role in the design of the study and collection, analysis, and interpretation of data and in writing the manuscript. K.L., L.K., S.R. and C.N. received no funding for the study.