Evidence to Date

What Makes BEAM Different?

Built with families. Proven through research.

Most digital mental health programs focus on either parent wellbeing or parenting skills.
BEAM was designed to support both.

Developed alongside parents, clinicians, researchers, and community partners, BEAM combines evidence-based mental health strategies with practical parenting support in one accessible digital program.

What the Research Shows

Across multiple studies, parents participating in BEAM experienced improvements in mental health and parenting outcomes, while also reporting positive experiences with the program.

Parent Mental Health

✓ Anxiety symptoms

✓ Depression symptoms

✓ Overall mental health symptoms

✓ Sleep difficulties

Sources: MacKinnon et al., 2022; Xie et al., 2023; Roos et al., 2026

Parenting Outcomes

✓ Harsh parenting outcomes

✓ Parenting-related outcomes among parents experiencing elevated mental health symptoms

Source: Roos et al., 2026

Engagement & Acceptability

✓ Feasible to deliver in a digital format

✓ Acceptable to parents

✓ Engaging for parents experiencing elevated mental health symptoms

✓ Viewed as credible by parents

Sources: MacKinnon et al., 2022; Xie et al., 2023; Horn et al., 2025; Rioux et al., 2024; Simpson et al., 2023

Featured Study

PHASE III RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL

Published in the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology (2026)

BEAM outperformed unrestricted services-as-usual in reducing maternal anxiety symptoms.

Parents with higher baseline anxiety and depression experienced the greatest improvements in mental health and parenting outcomes.

Read Publication

Photo of two parents cuddling with their three children.

BEAM was developed to meet enormous mental health and parenting needs in the community that parents and providers identified.

BEAM was co-developed with parents and has been tested in 4 different studies with parents of infants and toddlers. The program has undergone ongoing revisions to incorporate feedback and advisory board input.

Why BEAM?

Photo of a parent sitting with their two smiling children.

Feasibility

Across all 4 trials, program engagement, program satisfaction, and perceived ease of use have all been high.

Photo of a parent sitting with their two children.

BEAM addresses a variety of mental health problems. Depression consistently decreases in parents enrolled in BEAM. We have also shown reductions in anxiety symptoms and sleep problems, compared to usual services. For individuals with higher symptoms, BEAM has contributed to greater reductions in overall mental health symptoms, including anger.

Mental Health

Photo of two parents sitting with their child.

Parenting

BEAM has contributed to greater reductions in harsh parenting, compared to usual services. This includes reductions in conflictual parenting interactions for families with higher mental health symptoms.

References

Roos, L. E., Mackinnon, A. L., Xie, E. B., Simpson, K. M., Rioux, C., Reynolds, K. A., Giuliano, R. J., Harrington, J., Protudjer, J. L. P., Soderstrom, M., Sauer-Zavala, S., Giesbrecht, G. F., Lebel, C., Watts, D., Belows, M., Penner-Goeke, L., Freeman, M., & Tomfohr-Madsen, L. (2026). Treating Maternal Mental Health Problems with an App-Based Program: A Randomized Control Trial of BEAM, for Mothers of Young Children. Manuscript accepted to Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1037/ccp0001000

Horn, S. R., McHardy, R. J. W., Joyce, K. M., Rioux, C., MacKinnon, A., Hai, T., Tomfohr-Madsen, L., & Roos, L. E. (2025). Sociodemographic predictors of engagement in an eHealth parenting program for mothers with elevated depressive and anxiety symptoms. Journal of Technology in Behavioral Science.DOI: 10.1007/s4 1347-025-00523-0

Simpson, K. M., McHardy, R. J. W., Zhou, J. G., Levasseur-Puhach, S., Côté, C. M., Braun, M., Clement, F., MacKinnon, A. L., Nickel, N., Afifi, T. O., Giesbrecht, G. F., Giuliano, R., Katz, L. Y., Kelly, L. E., Klassen, T. P., Lebel, C., Mushquash, A., R eynolds, K., Decai re, E., Mughal, W., … Roos, L. E. (2025). Building Emotional Awareness and Mental Health (BEAM): study protocol for a hybrid implementation-effectiveness trial of the BEAM app-based program for parents with clinical mental health problems. BMC psychiatry, 25(1), 567. DOI: 10.1186/s 128 88-025-06964

Alsaidi, T. H., Joyce, K. M., Bremner, K., Simpson, K. M., Martinez, A. M., Unger, J. M., Hai, T., Cameron, E. E., Tomfohr-Madsen, L. A., Archibald, M., Stewart-Tufescu, A., & Roos, L. E. (2024). Online self-directed mental health interventions: A meta-analysis and systematic review. PsyArXiv. Preprint DOI: 10.312 34/osf.io/v8nyt

Cote, C., Mollons, M., Alsaidi, T., Tongol, N., Levasseur-Puhach, S., & Roos, L. E. (2024). The Acceptability and Feasibility of Implementing a Systems Navigator Role for a Digital Mental Health Program for Families of Young Children. PsyArXiv. Preprint DOI: 10.31234/osf.io/vuc8r

Sitka, M., McHardy, R. J. W., Watts, D., Roos, L. E., Tomfohr-Madsen, L., Turner, H., Penner-Goeke, L., Rioux, C., Mackinnon, A., Giesbrecht, G. F., Lebel, C., & Giuliano, R. (2024). Smartwatch photoplethysmography heart rate measures are associated with parenting b ehaviors in mothers with elevated mental health symptoms. Translational Issues in Psychological Science, 10(2), 232–244. DOI: 10.1037/tps0000406

Rio ux, C., Konkin, A., Tomfo hr-Madsen, L., MacKinnon, A. L., Cameron, E. E, Watts, D., Xie, E. B., & Roos, L. E. (2024). Parent eHealth preferences: Perceived credibility and personal reactions to AbilitiCBT, BEAM, and Triple P Online.Collabra: Psychology, 10(1), 121252. DOI: 10.1525/collabra.121252

Joyce, K. M., Rioux, C., MacKinnon, A. L., K atz, L. Y., Reynolds, K., Kelly, L. E., ... & Roos, L. E. (2023). The Building Emotional Awareness and Mental health (BEAM) program developed with a community partner for mothers of infants: protocol for a feasibility randomized controlled trial. Pilot and Feasibility Studies, 9(1), 1-14.

Simpson, K., Freeman, M., Steele-Mitchell, S., MacKinnon, A., Protudjer, J., Tomfohr-Madsen, L*., Roos, L*., & Reynolds, K*. (2023). Participant Experiences of the Building Emotional Awarene ss and Mental Health App-Based Intervention: A Qualitative Program Evaluation. Open Science Framework. Preprint DOI: 10.31234/osf.io/7cf8a

Simpson, K. M., Penner , K. E., Penner-Goeke, L., Stienwandt, S., Cameron, E. E., Giuliano, R. J., & Roos, L. E. (2023). Virtual assessment of stress reactivity in young children: Practical guidelines & lessons learned. Open Science Framework. Preprint DOI: 10.31234/osf.io/7wqxn

Watts, D., Nelson, B., Penner-Goeke, L., Bellows, M., Giuliano, R., Tomf ohr-Madsen, L., & Roos., L.E. (2022). Fitbit Inspire 2 Participant Quick Start Guide. BEAM Study Wearable Protocol. Open Science Framework. Preprint DOI: https://osf.io/ucpf8/.

Xie, E. B., Freeman, M., Penner-Goeke, L., Reynolds, K., Lebel, C., Giesbrecht, G. F., ... & Tomfohr-Madsen, L. (2023). Building Emotional Awareness and Mental Health (BEAM): an open-pilot and feasibility study of a digital mental health and parenting intervention for mothers of infants. Pilot and Feasibility Studies, 9(1), 1-13.

MacKinnon, A. L., Simpson, K. M., Salisbury, M. R., Bobula, J., Penner-Goeke, L., Berard, L., ... & Roos, L. E. (2022). Building Emotional Awareness and Mental Health (BEAM): a pilot randomized controlled trial of an app-based program for mothers of toddlers. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 13, 880972.

Xie, E. B., Simpson, K. M., Reynolds, K. A., Giuliano, R. J., Protudjer, J. L., Soderstrom, M., ... & Roos, L. E. (2022). Building Emotional Awareness and Mental Health (BEAM): study protocol for a phase III randomized controlled trial of the BEAM app-based program for mothers of children 18–36 months. Trials, 23(1), 1-21.