Family-Based Interventions for Youth Depression: Meta-Analysis of Randomized Clinical Trials

Youth depression is an impairing pediatric condition for which psychotherapy effects are modest. Can outcomes be improved by treatments that address the family context, as proposed in practice parameters of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry? To find out, we searched five decades of research for randomized controlled trials testing family-based interventions; 11 trials were found for ages 4–18 years. Using robust variance estimation, we obtained estimates of effect size (ES) and tested candidate moderators that might explain variation in ES. Overall pooled ES of the studies was 0.33 at posttreatment, similar to that reported for all youth depression treatments in three prior meta-analyses (i.e., 0.36, 0.30, and 0.29), but higher for adolescents (ages ≥ 13, 0.50) than children (0.04). Taken together, our findings do not show superior outcomes for family-based interventions, and raise questions about how much confidence can be placed in the evidence base to date. The small number of relevant studies in more than five decades, together with the publication bias and risk of bias concerns, highlights the need for more trials testing family-based treatment, and for pre-registered reports, publicly-available preprints, and other mechanisms for improving the dissemination of completed research.