TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2009//
TI  - Stress-prevention in secondary schools: online- versus face-to-face-training
JO  - Health education (1992)
A1  - Fridrici, Mirko
A1  - Lohaus, Arnold
SP  - 299
EP  - 313
VL  - 109
IS  - 4
N2  - Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to focus on the evaluation of an internet-delivered stress-prevention program for adolescents as a possible alternative for school-based implementation of mental health promotion.  Design/methodology/approach - A total of 904 adolescents in grades eight and nine were assigned to four treatment conditions (online-training in school, online-training via internet from home, school-based face-to-face training, control group without intervention). Before and after the training interval, all adolescents were questioned about their knowledge regarding stress and coping and their appraisal of stress-evoking situations. The participants self-assessed their perceived stress vulnerability, their coping behavior and their stress symptoms. In addition, the training groups were asked about their training acceptance.  Findings - The results show a considerable knowledge gain for participants of the online-program. The number of positive cognitions in stress-evoking situations also increased, although this effect was only observed in the school-based online-training setting. Regarding training acceptance, the best results were obtained for participants of the classical face-to-face intervention.  Research limitations/implications - Future research should examine factors that influence compliance rates in internet-delivered prevention programs.  Practical implications - Although online-prevention cannot completely substitute school-based face-to-face-training, it can be seen as an effective and economic complement to conventional methods of health promotion.  Originality/value - This paper presents not only a comparative evaluation of internet- and school-based health promotion targeting adolescents, but also a comparison of the effects of online-prevention under "real" and "ideal" conditions.<p /> 
LA  - 
SN  - 0965-4283
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/09654280910970884
ID  - ref1
ER  -