From:  Digital mental health interventions in Indigenous and traditional communities of the Global South: a scoping review protocol

 Inclusion and exclusion criteria.

ComponentDescription
P—Population

Indigenous and traditional communities of the Global South.

This includes:

  • Indigenous peoples: communities that maintain historical continuity with pre-colonial or pre-settler societies, possess distinct sociocultural systems, and self-identify as Indigenous based on shared ancestry, language, traditions, and a collective sense of identity and belonging.

  • Traditional communities: culturally diverse ethnic groups that maintain ancestral social structures, spiritual and linguistic traditions, and territorial ties, but are not formally recognised as Indigenous or do not self-identify as such. Examples include Adivasi (India), Zulu (South Africa), or Quilombolas (Brazil).

All age groups are considered eligible, including children, adolescents, adults, and older adults. Studies will be included even if Indigenous or traditional communities are not the sole focus of the sample, as long as these populations are clearly represented—for example, through the reporting of ethnicity in the description of participants’ sociodemographic characteristics.

C—ConceptDigital mental health interventions, including the development, use, implementation, and evaluation of technologies such as mobile health applications, telepsychiatry, chatbots, video games, virtual reality, and other digital tools designed to promote mental well-being, prevent or manage mental health conditions, support diagnosis, or deliver psychosocial care. Mental health conditions include depression, anxiety disorders, trauma-related disorders, and substance use disorders—notably alcohol use disorder—which are frequently reported among Indigenous peoples and traditional communities [38].
C—ContextGlobal South, broadly understood as low- and middle-income settings or historically colonised regions, primarily located in Latin America, Africa, Oceania, and Asia. The focus is on countries with a significant presence of Indigenous peoples and traditional communities, such as Mexico, Guatemala, Colombia, Peru, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Paraguay, Kenya, Tanzania, South Africa, Namibia, India, Nepal, Indonesia, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, and other Pacific Island nations such as Fiji, Samoa, and Vanuatu. China will be excluded from this review, as it is considered the world’s second-largest economy.
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