Assessing the impact of the I-Deal Life Skills Intervention on the psychosocial wellbeing of Syrian refugee children in Lebanon

This study reports on the findings of an evaluation of I-Deal, a life skills intervention aimed at fostering resilience among early adolescent refugees, using a parallel group randomised controlled trial to compare I-Deal to a structured recreational activity group (SRA). 325 adolescents in Akkar, Lebanon, 74% of them Syrian, were randomised to I-Deal or SRA. Ultimately, the findings do not support the effectiveness of I-Deal. Several factors are considered that may help explain the lack of effect, including the aspects of the intervention design, possible measurement error suggested by low reliabilities on several instruments and a ceiling effect on our primary outcome.