Kaileigh Byrne, Wallace R. Roy Distinguished Associate Professor of psychology in the College of Behavioral, Social and Health Sciences (CBSHS), has developed a mobile application, MyAtlasU, to deliver evidence-based strategies derived from cognitive behavioral and acceptance-based approaches to support college students’ well-being, resilience and stress management.
In 2021, Byrne identified the need for virtual mental health support as students were struggling with continued isolation from the pandemic. From concept to prototype, Byrne developed the app – then called Airheart – in four months. At the time, the goal was simply to conduct a two-week randomized controlled trial to determine if virtual agents could effectively deliver evidence-based cognitive behavioral therapy to students. As a result, Byrne found that 68% of participants wanted to continue using the app beyond the two-week trial period.
Building on the success of the first trial, Byrne conducted a second study to identify which features of the virtual agent participants considered vital to their user experience. The results indicated animation was the most important feature to student participants.
Byrne said students found value in the app because it was accessible, immediate and easy to incorporate into their daily lives, and they benefited from their interactions with the animated virtual agent.
“MyAtlasU expands the support available to students and serves as an evidence-based resource they can turn to when traditional care may not be immediately accessible. I consider MyAtlasU to be another tool in the continuum of care, one that meets students where they are and complements the mental health services universities are already providing,” said Byrne.
Byrne credits much of the academic research project’s success to the students in her undergraduate Creative Inquiry course. Undergraduate students recruited participants and conducted data collection, analyses and follow-up interviews.
After two successful trials demonstrating the intervention’s effectiveness, Byrne was determined to expand the project beyond academic research – and at the suggestion of CBSHS associate dean for research Bryan Miller, she applied to the University’s translational research program, Simulating Translation of Research via Intentional Development and Ecosystem (STRIDE) Accelerating Research Translation (ART) Academy.
Clemson is one of eighteen universities to receive an ART grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to support innovation and research translation nationwide.
Through the STRIDE ART Academy, Byrne explored paths for commercialization to ensure the intervention did not end with the academic project. The process led to the development of a MyAtlasU spinout company and technology copyright.
According to Byrne, the goal of a University spinout company is to bridge academic research and entrepreneurship. It enables faculty to continue conducting research while training graduate students in both academic science and business leadership. Through this model, students gain hands-on experience translating research into real-world applications and have the opportunity to serve as the company’s chief executive officer after graduation.
“Translational research is a new priority for the College of Behavioral, Social and Health Sciences, and Dr. Byrne exemplifies this innovative approach,” said Miller. “Her work engages undergraduate and graduate students in meaningful research while providing them with unique opportunities to develop the skills needed to move discoveries from the University into practice.”
Byrne and her team were also selected for the competitive, national NSF Innovation Corps (I-Corps) Teams training program. NSF I-Corps is an immersive, entrepreneurial training program that facilitates the transformation of invention to commercialization. Byrne first participated in the regional NSF I-Corps program where she conducted 30 customer discovery interviews to match her product with its target audience and market. During the national program, Byrne will conduct 100 more interviews and attend two entrepreneurial conferences.
Additionally, MyAtlasU was selected as a South Carolina Research Authority (SCRA) member company. SCRA provides funding and support to advance translational research and accelerate the growth of academic startups. Less than 40% of companies that apply are accepted as a SCRA member.
MyAtlasU is now available in app stores for users with email addresses from educational institutions (.edu) and will be piloted at four universities across the country to examine retention, reduce drop-out rates and improve students’ grade point average.
The Department of Psychology is a part of the College of Behavioral, Social and Health Sciences. Established in July 2016, CBSHS is a 21st-century, land-grant college that combines work in seven disciplines – communication; nursing; parks, recreation and tourism management; political science; psychology; public health sciences; sociology, anthropology and criminal justice – to further its mission of “building people and communities” in South Carolina and beyond.
