Effectiveness of lay workers delivering behavioural activation for people with depression: systematic review and meta-analysis
Shwikar Othman, Lauren Blekkenhorst, Asangaedem Akpan, Irene Ngune, Nilufeur McKay, Alison Kennedy, Elizabeth Armstrong, Michael Hunter, Kevin Murray, Mathew Coleman, Richard Gray, Emma Jones, Christopher Lee, Martin Jones · 2026
Read Effectiveness of lay workers delivering behavioural activation for people with depression: systematic review and meta-analysis by Shwikar Othman, Lauren Blekkenhorst, Asangaedem Akpan, Irene Ngune, Nilufeur McKay, Alison Kennedy, Elizabeth Armstrong, Michael Hunter, Kevin Murray, Mathew Coleman, Richard Gray, Emma Jones, Christopher Lee, Martin Jones (2026) in the Tower of Babel, a free online library of public-domain works preserved in clean, searchable text. No sign-up. The full text is served as a plain-text file at a predictable URL, where text is present: https://antarctic-labs.com/tower-of-babel/PMC13312275.txt.
Description
Shwikar Othman and colleagues present a 2026 systematic review and meta-analysis asking whether behavioural activation for depression still works when trained lay workers, rather than professionals, deliver it. The therapy is proven in specialist hands, and lay delivery could widen access where mental health professionals are scarce.
Searching six databases to January 2025, the team found six randomized trials covering 1,118 people in intervention groups and 1,596 in control groups. Pooled results showed a small but significant drop in depressive symptoms favoring lay-delivered activation. Every trial carried a high risk of bias, though, and results varied widely between studies. The authors conclude the approach looks promising for underserved settings, while warning that the current evidence base is too shaky for firm claims.
Catalog record
| CREATOR | Shwikar Othman, Lauren Blekkenhorst, Asangaedem Akpan, Irene Ngune, Nilufeur McKay, Alison Kennedy, Elizabeth Armstrong, Michael Hunter, Kevin Murray, Mathew Coleman, Richard Gray, Emma Jones, Christopher Lee, Martin Jones |
|---|---|
| YEAR | 2026 |
| COLLECTION | PAPERS |
| FORMAT | TXT |
| FILE SIZE | 82211 |
| LICENSE | https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 |
| RIGHTS | CC BY |
| SOURCE | Europe PMC |