Published Research

The evidence for traditional peer support’s efficacy abounds. Now, there’s also mounting peer-reviewed research on Supportiv’s unique digital model of peer support via real-time professionally moderated, live small group chats, and the clinical outcomes and return-on-investment (ROI) achieved.

Use of Digital Peer Support for Employee Well-Being: A Retrospective Analysis Across Five Large Employers

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JMIR Human Factors
Date: April 7, 2026
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Publication highlights:

A retrospective analysis of 24,818 employee chats, across five large employers spanning multiple industries, examined measurable outcomes from Supportiv’s synchronous, moderated digital peer support with real-time resource sharing. Sentiment changes in employee conversations were analyzed using AI-driven natural language processing, examining eight sentiments (loneliness, sadness, stress, anxiety, depression, despair, helplessness, and optimism).

Employee users saw improved emotional outcomes even in the span of a single session, and most employees used DPS outside typical business hours, highlighting the gap in typical mental health care and the need for 24/7 accessible mental health support.

Notable results include:

• Optimism increased by 77% on average during a single Supportiv session, averaging 38 minutes
• Loneliness reduced by 46%
• Stress reduced by 46%
• Sadness reduced by 45%
• Depression reduced by 40%
• Anxiety reduced by 39%
• Despair reduced by 40%
• Helplessness reduced by 38%
• The addition of realtime resource sharing through Supportiv’s patented technology compounded positive emotional outcomes by an additional 8.8% on average
• 68% of DPS conversations occurred outside traditional business hours

Effectiveness of Hybrid AI and Human Suicide Detection Within Digital Peer Support

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Journal of Clinical Medicine
Date: March 3, 2026
Link

Publication highlights:

This study examined the effectiveness of Supportiv’s hybrid solution combining a proprietary AI suicidal ideation (SI) detection model with real-time human moderation within 449,946 user sessions from January–December 2024.

Key paper findings based on passive and active SI instances identified using a hybrid AI and human moderator solution with post-hoc LLM verification:

• Active and passive SI occurred in 3.19% of live chats
• The proprietary AI model identified SI faster than humans in 77.52% of passive and 81.26% of active cases, with 90.3% agreement
• Within 71.3 seconds after AI detection and moderator agreement, moderators had enacted crisis question protocols to determine active vs. passive SI and referred 5,472 active SI users (1.21%) to higher-tier crisis care
• Users participating in live chats with SI present saw average reductions of 29.3% in depression, 26.8% in loneliness, 25.3% in despair, and 22.3% in helplessness, with optimism increasing on average 40.4%

Exploring the Impact of Digital Peer Support Services on Meeting Unmet Needs Within an Employee Assistance Program: Retrospective Cohort Study

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JMIR Human Factors
Date: February 25, 2025
Link

Publication highlights:

The paper documents a retrospective cohort study of individuals who used Supportiv digital peer support, offered by the MINES Employee Assistance Plan.

Key paper findings based on embedding Supportiv within the EAP’s offerings include:

• An average of 2.07 fewer therapy sessions per participant (p < .001) on a five therapy session EAP model, within a matched cohort sample, with a large effect size (Cohen’s d = 1.77)
• Strong reductions in negative emotional sentiment for participants: sadness reduced by 57.50%, loneliness reduced by 55.04%, and stress reduced by 56.47%
• Over 73% of peer support users engaged in the 24/7 service outside of the regular business hours of 8am-5pm, when clinical care is frequently unavailable

Role of Synchronous, Moderated, and Anonymous Peer Support Chats on Reducing Momentary Loneliness in Older Adults: Retrospective Observational Study

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JMIR Formative Research
Date: October 25, 2024
Link

Publication highlights:

Using Supportiv’s moderated online peer-to-peer support solution produced statistically significant improvements in Senior loneliness and optimism for a Medicare plan, even in a single live, moderated chat.

Of particular interest, after just 8 and 9 minutes, respectively, participants began to see:

• Up to a 49.43% decrease in loneliness
• Up to a 33.71% increase in optimism
• Much stronger improvements in group chat conditions vis 1:1 interactions

“Digital peer support interventions for emotional struggles contrast the usual provider-based clinical care models because they offer more accessible, direct support for empowerment, highlighting the users’ autonomy, competence, and relatedness.”