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Bite Back

Black Dog Institute

Bite Back is Black Dog Institute's free, self-guided online wellbeing and resilience program for young people aged 13 to 16 years.

  • Online

Pricing: Free

Origin: Developed in Australia for Australian schooling contexts

Affiliations: Mental Health Coordinating Council MHCC; Approved elsewhere: NSW

Product type: Program; Posters; Fact sheets; Online resources (e.g. videos, games, tools, readings); Student activities; Activity sheets; Whole school approach or initiative; Learning modules; Class lesson plans

Contact details

Black Dog Institute
ABN: 12 115 954 197

https://www.biteback.org.au/

schools@blackdog.org.au

Focus areas

  • Positive relationships

  • Belonging and inclusion

  • Mental health literacy and life skills

  • Resilience and optimism

Curriculum alignment

  • Health and PE

Prospective users

Audience: Whole class universal (Tier 1)

Context: School or centre-based

Main beneficiaries: Year 7, Year 8, Year 9, Year 10

Delivery style: Classroom teacher is trained; Student, self-directed

Aims & approach

Bite Back uses a combination of fun, interactive online activities, quizzes, animations and information across nine positive psychology domains including gratitude, optimism, flow, meaning, hope, mindfulness, character strengths, healthy lifestyle, and positive relationships. The program runs over six weeks with associated lesson plans and online learning modules for each week.

Implementation support

  • Implementation training webinars or modules

Evidence

Bite Back's approach is informed by Positive Psychology, and its impact is supported by evidence that using the program can decrease symptoms of depression and anxiety and increase wellbeing, as found in a Randomised Control Trial exploring the program's feasibility in the context of Australian youth. The full article can be found here.