The effectiveness of wilderness therapy as mental health treatment for adolescents in Norway: a mixed methods evaluation

Gabrielsen, Leiv Einar; Eskedal, Leif; Mesel, Terje; Aasen, Gunnar Oland; Hirte, Martin; Kerlefsen, Reidun Erene; Palucha, Vibeke; Fernee, Carina Ribe

doi:10.1080/02673843.2018.1528166

Cited by 26 publications

(32 citation statements)

References 21 publications

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“…The specific psychological interventions identified were incredibly variable (see Online Appendix E), ranging from cognitive and/or behavioral-based therapies (Fowler et al, 2018 ; Gee et al, 2018 ; Isa et al, 2018 ; Lin et al, 2013 , 2014 ; Metsäranta et al, 2019 ; Ritschel et al, 2011 , 2016 ; Sælid & Nordahl, 2017 ; Shepherd et al, 2018 ) to other talking (Conklin, 2009 ; Green et al, 2007 ; Leibovich et al, 2020 ; Teodorczuk et al, 2019 ), arts (Walsh & Minor-Schork, 1997 ) or activity-based (Gabrielsen et al, 2019 ; Gillig et al, 2019 ; Hambridge, 2017 ; Smith et al, 2011 ) interventions. Interventions were variable with respect to duration and number of sessions (Online Appendix E).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Systematic Review and Lived-Experience Panel Analysis of Hopefulness in Youth Depression Treatment

et al. 2021

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Hopefulness is arguably of central importance to the recovery of youth with major or complex youth depression, yet it is unclear how hopefulness can best be enhanced in treatment. A narrative synthesis of published and grey literature was combined with new insights from a youth lived-experience panel (N = 15), focusing on to what extent and how specific psychological therapies and standard mental health care scaffold hopefulness as applied to depression among 14–25-year-olds. Thirty-one studies of variable quality were included in this review; thirteen were qualitative, thirteen quantitative, and five used mixed methods. Hopefulness is an important active ingredient of psychotherapies and standard mental health care in youth depression. Evidence suggests talking and activity therapies have moderate to large effects on hopefulness and that hopefulness can be enhanced in standard mental health care. However, varying intervention effects suggest a marked degree of uncertainty. Hopefulness is best scaffolded by a positive relational environment in which there is support for identifying and pursuing personally valued goals and engaging in meaningful activity.Animated (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o4690PdTGec) and graphical summaries (https://doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.27024.84487) are available.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Systematic Review and Lived-Experience Panel Analysis of Hopefulness in Youth Depression Treatment

et al. 2021

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“…While nature is most often integrated into camp life, lack of explicit mention of nature may have excluded articles that could be relevant for childhood cancer survivors. On the other hand, it can be argued that a wilderness program/wilderness therapy is more than "merely" a camp in nature; rather, it could be seen as essential that considerable time be spent embedded in wilderness without any interference from people outside of the group [12,16]. Five out of the 15 articles (33%) in this scoping review met this "remote wilderness" criterion [47-49, 52, 55].…”

Section: Strengths and Limitationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…There is no consistent or universally accepted definition of wilderness therapy, which makes it difficult to compare and replicate the outcome of studies on wilderness therapy. In current literature, wilderness therapy is identified interchangeably with numerous other terms such as challenge courses, adventure-based therapy, wilderness experience programs, nature therapy, therapeutic camping, recreation therapy, outdoor therapy, open-air therapy and adventure camps [12,13]. Together with this extensive variability in terminology, there are multiple definitions of wilderness therapy One definition advocated by Russell defines wilderness therapy as an intervention that utilizes outdoor adventure activities, such as primitive skills and reflection, to enhance personal and interpersonal growth [13].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A scoping review to map the concept, content, and outcome of wilderness programs for childhood cancer survivors

et al. 2021

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Objectives Systematic mapping of the concept, content, and outcome of wilderness programs for childhood cancer survivors. Design Scoping review. Search strategy Searches were performed in 13 databases and the grey literature. Included studies describe participation of childhood cancer survivors in wilderness programs where the role of nature had a contextual and therapeutic premise. At least two authors independently performed screening, data extraction and analysis. Results Database searches yielded 1848 articles, of which 15 met the inclusion criteria. The majority of programs (73%) employed adventure therapy. Five activity categories were identified as components of wilderness programs: challenge/risk, free time/leisure, experiential learning, physical activity and psychotherapeutic activities. A majority of the participating childhood cancer survivors were female, white, aged 8–40 years, with a wide range of cancer diagnoses. Reported outcomes included increased social involvement, self-esteem, self-confidence, self-efficacy, social support, and physical activity. Key gaps identified included the absence of randomized controlled trials (RCTs), lack of studies on long-term effects, lack of information on the multicultural aspects of programs, and missing information on engagement in nature activities after the program ended. Conclusions This scoping review guides childhood cancer survivors, their families, practitioners, clinicians and researchers in the development and optimization of wilderness programs for childhood cancer survivors. In addition, it informs the utilization of these programs, and identifies gaps in the evidence base of wilderness programs. It is recommended that future study reporting on wilderness programs include more detail and explicitly address the role of nature in the program. Performing RCTs on wilderness programs is challenging, as they occur in real-life contexts in which participants cannot be blinded. Creative solutions in the design of pragmatic trials and mixed method studies are thus needed for further investigation of the effectiveness and safety of wilderness programs in childhood cancer survivors.

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“…Furthermore, interventions that increase social interaction are strongly recommended to decrease distress, decrease isolation and improve adjustment 10 29. There is a renewed interest in interacting with nature as a health promotion strategy to increase quality of life 30 31. Wilderness therapy is an example of the application of nature-human interaction in a therapeutic context.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…So far, there is no universally accepted definition of wilderness therapy. Adventure therapy is regarded the umbrella term under which a large variety of approaches appear such as wilderness therapy, nature therapy, recreation therapy, outdoor therapy or open-air therapy 30. Russell defined wilderness therapy as an intervention that utilises outdoor adventure activities—such as primitive skills and reflection—to enhance personal and interpersonal growth 31.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mapping the concept, content and outcome of wilderness therapy for childhood cancer survivors: protocol for a scoping review

et al. 2019

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IntroductionLong-term childhood cancer survivors are at risk for frailty and have significant health-related issues in adulthood. Various health promotion interventions have been proposed to enhance quality of life including wilderness therapy, which applies the impact of nature on health in a therapeutic context. Previous studies have described positive outcomes linked with various wilderness-related therapies for cancer survivors. However, there is no clarity on the role these therapies play in childhood cancer. The current scoping review aims to systematically map the concept, content and outcome of wilderness therapy for childhood cancer survivors.Methods and analysisThis review will be guided by the Joanna Briggs Institute Reviewers’ manual for scoping reviews. A systematic literature search using medical subject headings (MeSH) and text words related to wilderness therapy and childhood cancer survivors will be performed in EMBASE, ERIC, Medline, Psycinfo, CINAHL, Scopus, Web of Science, SPORTDiscus and Svemed+, Sociological Abstracts, supplemented by grey literature searches. Eligible quantitative and qualitative studies will be screened, included, assessed for quality and extracted for data by two reviewers independently. Results will be described in a narrative style, reported in extraction tables and diagrams, and where appropriate in themes and text.Ethics and disseminationThis study describes a protocol for a scoping review that will undertake secondary analysis of data already published in literature and is therefore exempt from medical ethical review. The scoping review will inform understanding of the benefits and risks of wilderness therapy for childhood cancer survivors, their families, practitioners, clinicians and researchers, and will help elucidate the steps necessary for building its evidence base going forward. Results will be published in a peer-reviewed scientific journal.

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The effectiveness of wilderness therapy as mental health treatment for adolescents in Norway: a mixed methods evaluation

Cited by 26 publications

References 21 publications

A Systematic Review and Lived-Experience Panel Analysis of Hopefulness in Youth Depression Treatment

A Systematic Review and Lived-Experience Panel Analysis of Hopefulness in Youth Depression Treatment

A scoping review to map the concept, content, and outcome of wilderness programs for childhood cancer survivors

Mapping the concept, content and outcome of wilderness therapy for childhood cancer survivors: protocol for a scoping review

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