About BITE BACK
BITE BACK is an online program developed by Black Dog Institute as a space to learn, develop & improve strategies to amplify the good stuff in life.
The program uses positive psychology activities that target primarily gratitude, mindfulness & social connections to improve resilience and wellbeing.
- Interviews & blog posts promote new ideas and role models who are making positive impacts and getting the most out of their own lives.
- Quizzes help users identify their levels of mental fitness, focus/flow, gratitude, mindfulness, happiness & characteristics of their personality.
- A ‘bookshelf’ resource provides factsheets on positive psychology domains & dealing with tough teen issues.
- A community forum allows young people to share and comment on their stories of resilience and others’ content. Competitions are run to engage users in positive psych domains.
Who is BITE BACK for?
BITE BACK is for any young person seeking to reduce stress, anxiety, and depression and improve wellbeing & resilience to help cope when tough situations arise. Bite Back is intended for users aged 12-18 years but specifically targets the 14-16 years age group.
Is there a cost to use BITE BACK?
No.
How to access BITE BACK’s services
BITEBACK is available online at https://www.biteback.org.au/. To register and have full access of the site, users need to provide a screen name, email, password, month & year of birth, and postcode. They also need to indicate how they heard about BITE BACK and whether they want email updates. Users can optionally provide their gender and choose to hide their location from public view on the site.
BITE BACK Research and Evaluation
BITE BACK was demonstrated to be effective in reducing stress, anxiety, and depression in a community sample of adolescents aged 12 to 18 years of age when used weekly over a period of 6 weeks.
Burckhardt, Rowan; Manicavasagar, Vijaya; Batterham, Philip J.; Miller, Leonie M.; Talbot, Elizabeth; Lum, Alistair; A Web-Based Adolescent Positive Psychology Program in Schools: Randomized Controlled Trial. Journal of Medical Internet Research, Vol 17(7), Jul, 2015 Publisher: Gunther Eysenbach.
Manicavasagar, Vijaya; Horswood, Deserae; Burckhardt, Rowan; Lum, Alistair; Hadzi-Pavlovic, Dusan; Parker, Gordon; Feasibility and effectiveness of a web-based positive psychology program for youth mental health: randomized controlled trial. Journal of Medical Internet Research, Vol 16(6), Jun, 2014 pp. 23-39. Publisher: Gunther Eysenbach.
