The goal of this clinical trial is to learn if a new behavioral intervention, MB-Spirit, can improve well-being in stressed adults. The main questions it aims to answer are: 1. Can MB-Spirit improve well-being? 2. What brain changes accompany participation in MB-Spirit? Participants will: 1. Be enrolled in an online course that meets for two hours every week for 8-weeks. 2. Complete questionnaires before and after the course. 3. Complete an MRI scan of their brain before and after the course. Participants will be randomized to either take the course right away, or be put on a wait-list. Those on the wait-list will undergo the testing at 2 timepoints before they start the program.
Forty-four individuals with high stress will be randomized 1:1, stratified by sex, to either MB-SPIRIT or wait-list. Participants will receive daily email with a link to a REDCap database to record minutes of formal meditation practice. Pre and post testing will occur within a 21-day testing period before or after the intervention. We will assess changes in spiritual well-being (Primary outcome), mindfulness, and use of character/virtue strengths (secondary outcomes). Changes in clinical symptoms will be explored. Participants will also complete a structured interview to assess developmental stage at the baseline time-point. Participants randomized to MB-Spirit will also undergo functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scanning before and after their program. Scans consist of a high-resolution gray matter scan, a 10-minute resting state scan and three 10-minute guided meditation scans. Participants will rate the 'depth' of each spiritual state they experience while they are in the scanner on a 5-point scale. As a manipulation check, after exiting the scanner they will be asked to describe the non-dual states and which virtues arose. We will also assess the acceptability of the task.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
OTHER
Masking
SINGLE
Enrollment
44
8-week online course that uses character strengths and mindfulness to promote well-being. Based on 3-part model of spirituality
Charlestown Navy Yard Campus
Boston, Massachusetts, United States
FACIT-SP meaning and peace subscale
The meaning and peace subscale of the widely used and well-validated FACIT-SP-non-illness (Functional assessment of chronic illness therapy spiritual wellbeing - non illness) is our primary outcome metric. It has very good reliability (alpha=.81) and has high discriminate validity.
Time frame: 8 weeks
Duke University Religion Index
Duke University Religion Index (DUREL) is a five-item measure to assess religiosity by examining three key dimensions: organizational religious activity (e.g., attending services), non-organizational religious activity (e.g., private prayer), and intrinsic religiosity (e.g., personal religious commitment and its influence on life). The overall scale has high test-retest reliability (intra-class correlation = 0.91), high internal consistence (Cronbach's alpha's = 0.78-0.91), high convergent validity with other measures of religiosity (r's = 0.71-0.86).
Time frame: 8-weeks
Brief Signature Strengths Use Scale (BSSUS)
Brief Signature Strengths Use Scale (BSSUS) measures the extent to which participants recognize and use their signature character strengths. Five items are scored on a 7-point Likert scale, ranging from ranging from Strongly disagree to Very strongly agree. Higher scores indicate higher strength use.
Time frame: 8 weeks
Metacognitive Processes of Decentering Scale (MPoD-t)
The Metacognitive Processes of Decentering Scale (MPoD-t) is a self-report scale developed to measure the ability to decenter, or separate one's sense of self from internal experiences, by assessing three core metacognitive processes: meta-awareness, (dis)identification with internal states, and (non)reactivity to thought content. The MPoD-t scales are used to study decentering, its role in mental health, and its potential as a therapeutic mechanism in mindfulness-based interventions
Time frame: 8 weeks
PROMIS-29
The 29-item PROMIS-29 contains short assessments of eight core health domains including: anxiety, depression, physical function, sleep disturbance, pain interference and pain intensity, fatigue, and ability to participate in social roles and activities. Cronbach's α reliability for all domains range from 0.77 to 0.98 and scores remained stable over 18 months132 All domains use a 7-day recall period, except for PF and SRAA.
Time frame: 8 weeks
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