Mechanisms of Mindfulness Training and Stress Reduction

Carnegie Mellon University137 enrolled

Overview

This study is a three-arm randomized controlled trial of a mindfulness stress reduction intervention, with the aim of dismantling the experience-monitoring and nonjudgmental-acceptance elements of mindfulness programs to determine the active treatment component. In addition to enhancing understanding of mechanisms underlying the effects of mindfulness interventions, identifying the therapeutic constituent(s) could inform development of targeted interventions as well as provide strategies to optimize adherence.

There is a growing body of randomized controlled trial (RCT) evidence indicating that mindfulness training interventions may reduce stress and improve stress-related disease outcomes. Yet little is known about the underlying active training mechanisms of mindfulness training. Although it is generally believed that mindfulness training interventions foster a capacity to monitor and accept present moment experience, debate currently focuses on whether it is the capacity to both monitor and non-judgmentally accept experience that drives the salutary effects observed in mindfulness training interventions. This project will test these putative active mechanisms by comparing two different types of mindfulness meditation training programs. N=135 stressed community adults will be recruited and randomized to either two different types of 8-week Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) programs or a No Treatment Control (assessment only) comparison condition. Participants will complete 3 days of daily experience sampling (Ecological Momentary Assessment) immediately before and after the 8-week intervention period to measure attentional control and stress perceptions in daily life. In order to measure psychological and HPA-axis stress reactivity to a controlled stressor, participants will also complete a standardized acute stress challenge task (the Trier Social Stress Test, TSST) immediately following the 3-day post-intervention assessment period. This project provides the first dismantling study of mindfulness meditation training, it utilizes cutting-edge daily experience sampling of real life stress (using EMA) and stress biomarkers (salivary cortisol), and will provide important initial information for designing more effective (and efficient) mindfulness training interventions in at-risk stressed patient populations.

Study Type

INTERVENTIONAL

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

BASIC_SCIENCE

Masking

DOUBLE

Enrollment

137

Conditions

Psychological Stress Mindfulness

Interventions

MindfulnessBEHAVIORAL

Mindfulness training practices aim to foster attention and acceptance toward one's present moment experience. Mindfulness consists of two components-- (1) deploying attention to monitor one's moment-to-moment experience, and (2) fostering an attitude of acceptance toward one's moment-to-moment experience

Eligibility

Sex: ALLMin age: 18 YearsMax age: 70 YearsHealthy volunteers:

Medical Language ↔ Plain English

Inclusion Criteria: * English speaking * Moderate- to high-stress * Owns an internet-enabled smart phone Exclusion Criteria: * Diagnosis of chronic mental (e.g. recurrent depression, schizophrenia, personality disorder) or physical disease (e.g. cancer, HIV, diabetes) * Hospitalization in past 3 months * Medication use that interferes with cortisol activity (e.g. corticosteroids) * Current oral contraceptive use * Pregnancy * Current antibiotic, antiviral, or antimicrobial treatment * Travel outside the country within the past 6 months to any country on the Center for Disease Control travel alert list * Recreational drug use, excessive alcohol or tobacco use * Significant experience with or daily practice of mindfulness meditation or related mind-body practice

Locations (3)

Carnegie Mellon University

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States

University of Pittsburgh Medical Center- Center for Integrative Medicine

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States

Pennsylvania State University

University Park, Pennsylvania, United States

Outcomes

Primary Outcomes

Daily life stress assessed via Ecological Momentary Assessment

Time frame: change from baseline 3-day period to post-intervention 3-day period, which is an average of 12 weeks

Secondary Outcomes

Daily life state attention and acceptance assessed via Ecological Momentary Assessment

Time frame: change from baseline 3-day period to post-intervention 3-day period, which is an average of 12 weeks

Subjective stress in response to social evaluative threat

Time frame: assessed at post-intervention, which is an average of 14 weeks

Salivary Cortisol in response to social evaluative threat

Time frame: assessed at post-intervention, which is an average of 14, at time 0, and 25, 35, and 60 minutes post-stress challenge

Blood Pressure reactivity to social evaluative threat (systolic and diastolic blood pressure)

Time frame: assessed at post-intervention, which is an average of 14 weeks, at 2-minute intervals during session

Sustained attention measured by the Dichotic Listening Task

Time frame: change from baseline to post-intervention, which is an average of 14 weeks

Sustained inattentional blindness measured by the Inattentional Blindness Task

Time frame: post-intervention only

Data from ClinicalTrials.gov

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