Various studies show a significant prevalence of depression amongst tertiary education students, compared to their counterparts of the same age. This thesis analyzed underlying causes and possible intervention points to reduce this prevalence in Switzerland. Secondary research was conducted to understand the problem area. Primary research was used to understand the specific context, the users, and their needs. A range of problem points have been described and the meaningfulness of interventions has been assessed.

The collected data pointed to an intervention within the situational factors of the context to reduce the high perceived stress levels of students.

Criteria were defined and ideas were generated and assessed by users and experts. The causes of the high perceived stress were found to be more fundamental than the stressors tackled by the users. Therefore criteria for a stress-reducing transformation of the system were determined and tested. This yielded promising results.

System Map