The Centre for Social Sciences Research (CSSR) and the  Institute for Democracy, Citizenship and Public Policy in Africa  (IDCPPA) at the University of Cape Town invite you to join us for a lunchtime seminar on 24 February 2026 at 12:45pm. The seminar will be presented by Nicole Chetty.

About the Seminar:

ParentApp Digital Parenting Intervention: Caregiver Mental Health & Engagement in Tanzania (MPhil findings)

Caregivers of adolescents in LMICs face significant mental health challenges with limited support. This study examines an offline digital parenting intervention (ParentApp for Teens) in Mwanza, Tanzania, using intervention arm data (n=1031) from a cluster RCT. Objectives: (1) Evaluate mental health changes (PHQ-4 depression/anxiety); (2) Identify psychosocial/engagement factors; (3) Explore engagement predictors. 

Significant symptom reductions occurred post-intervention (Z=-12.39, p<0.001) across genders. Better baseline self-reported health and lower parenting stress predicted improvements; social support and module completion did not. Engagement was high (~90%), with no baseline predictors identified.

Findings demonstrate ParentApp's promise for scalable caregiver mental health support in low-resource settings, highlighting the role of baseline health/stress while underscoring complex engagement dynamics. Future research should integrate advanced metrics (e.g., in-app analytics) and examine hybrid digital-non-digital effects.

Speakers

Nicole Chetty is a researcher focused on developing digital parenting programmes for LMICs. Her work focuses on parenting programmes to support caregiver wellbeing, mental health and prevent violence against adolescents.

She contributed to the ParentApp for Teens RCT analysis, examining engagement and mental health outcomes in Tanzania.

  24 February 2026
  12:45 - 14:00 SAST
   CSSR Seminar Room, 4.29 Robert Leslie Social Science Building, UCT

Hosted by the Centre for Social Science Research and the Institute for Democracy, Citizenship and Public Policy in Africa