Can a chatbot ease the pain of online bullying for depressed teens?
NCT ID NCT06835985
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This pilot study tests a chatbot named SMILEY that teaches coping skills and safe social media practices to marginalized youth (ages 12-18) who experience depression and online victimization. Over 4 weeks, participants interact with the chatbot at their own pace to learn how to manage online stress and negative comments. The goal is to see if the chatbot is engaging and helpful in reducing stress and improving safety online.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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About 75 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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May 2025
- Expected to finish
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Jul 2027
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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12 to 18 years
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Adolescents age 12-18 * Current moderate to severe depression (PHQ-9-M ≥ 11) * Patients must screen positive for depression, PHQ-9-M score ≥ 11, and online victimization (OV). A positive screen will be OV that occurred "a few times" for at least one type of OV or "once" for at least two types of OV. Exclusion Criteria: * Conditions that might impair their ability to effectively deploy interventions, including current manic or psychotic episode, presence of a life-threatening medical condition requiring immediate treatment, intellectual or developmental disability precluding comprehension of study procedure * Referring providers will be advised that adolescents must be capable of safely participating, specifically that they do not need urgent medical or psychiatric treatment.
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
2 sites. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
The full official record for this study. This one lists no contact details, but it is the first place any would appear.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 19104, United States
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Western Psychiatric Hospital
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 15213, United States
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