Resilient Students Training (ReST) : A Pilot RCT

Resilience is the ability to survive and thrive despite significant adversity. Trials of resilience-promoting interventions for university students have shown significant improvements in students' resilience and reductions in depressive and stress symptoms. Therefore, the goal of this study is to examine the feasibility of Resilient Student Training Intervention (ReST) to enhance resilience and reduce symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress in university students with at least one adverse childhood experience (ACE) in Hong Kong. The study will be conducted in two phases. Phase 1 is a co-designing approach with local university students to discover, define, develop, and deliver the ReST intervention based on the Double Diamond model (Design Council, 2015). In Phase 2, eligible participants will be randomly allocated to either receive the ReST intervention or a waitlist control group. In the intervention group, participants will receive one 60-minute individual session and two 90-minute group-based sessions. Our main objectives in this study are to answer the following research questions: 1. Can an effective Resilience Student Training Intervention (ReST) be used to improve resilience among undergraduate students with adverse childhood experiences and mental distress? 2. What proportion of eligible individuals participate, engage, and complete the interventions as part of the trial? 3. What proportion of eligible individuals participate in, engage with, and complete research assessments, and what data quality and completion rates can therefore be obtained? 4. Is the ReST intervention safe and acceptable from the participants' perspectives? 5. What sample size is required for a definitive trial?