AUTHOR=Wei Shuochi , Cheng Samantha Jeannie , Li Jiaxin , Choi Edmond Pui Hang , Wong William Chi Wai 

TITLE=Effectiveness of psychosocial interventions to improve the mental health in men who have sex with men: a systematic review and meta-analysis

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Psychiatry

VOLUME=Volume 16 - 2025

YEAR=2025

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychiatry/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2025.1612755

DOI=10.3389/fpsyt.2025.1612755

ISSN=1664-0640

ABSTRACT=BackgroundMen who have sex with men (MSM) are vulnerable to mental health problems. Some psychosocial interventions showed different effects on various mental health aspects, but the exact pooled effect size was uncertain. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of psychosocial interventions for mental health among MSM.MethodsWe included randomized controlled trials and quasi-experimental studies of psychosocial interventions aimed at improving the mental health of MSM. The outcomes were the effect sizes of overall mental health and specific aspects (depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, substance abuse, suicidal ideation, stress, coping, emotion, social function and identity). The fixed-effect or random-effect model was adopted to calculate the effect sizes. The study was registered with PROSPERO (CRD42024551392).ResultsWe included 14 studies conducted between 2010 and 2024. The effect size of intervention for overall mental health status was 0.14 (95%CI: 0.08-0.21, n=14, I2 = 28.23%). The interventions had positive effects in depressive symptoms (Hedges’ g=0.25, 95%CI: 0.09-0.41), anxiety symptoms (Hedges’ g=0.20, 95%CI: 0.12-0.29), substance abuse (Hedges’ g=0.19, 95%CI: 0.10-0.28), stress (Hedges’ g=0.18, 95%CI: 0.03-0.33), coping (Hedges’ g=0.21, 95%CI: 0.06-0.36), emotion (Hedges’ g=0.16, 95%CI: 0.06-0.25), and identity (Hedges’ g=0.19, 95%CI: 0.07-0.30). There was no publication bias.ConclusionsPsychosocial interventions have a small-to-moderate effect on improving the mental health status of the MSM. Our study provides a comprehensive evaluation of the intervention effect, with estimations of overall mental health status and some specific aspects.Systematic review registrationhttps://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/, identifier CRD42024551392.