Family-Focused CBT Skills App and Standard Self Help Options for Childhood Anxiety

Anxiety disorders are among the most common psychological disorders, with prevalent onset in childhood and adolescence. While cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is considered the first-line treatment for pediatric anxiety, significant barriers remain in accessing CBT and other evidence-based treatments (EBTs), and credible self-help resources based in EBT concepts. This study evaluates a family-guided CBT game application (Anchors App), targeted to children ages 6-11 and their families, which focuses on delivering adaptive CBT-based coping skills to those who have sub-clinical to mild anxiety and related symptoms in a convenient and portable platform. Anchors App will be evaluated in two forms (standard and "parent-enhanced") in comparison to use of a self-help book or waitlist control. The rapid advancements in technology allows richer interactive capacity, content scalability, customizability, and subscription to a broader range of content, which this app capitalizes on in order to increase access to CBT skill concepts directly to pediatric stakeholder populations. If found to be effective, Anchors App has the opportunity to promote engagement of EBT concepts in every-day use through smartphone technology, and will change the landscape of mental health prevention and early intervention for children and families.