To date, there is a lack of research on the dosage of mindfulness practices. Concerning mindfulness practices, a meta-analysis from Khoury et al. found that Mindfulness Based Therapy  (MBT)¦was more effective in treating psychological disorders than it was in treating physical or medical conditions. More specifically, MBT showed large and clinically significant effects in treating anxiety and depression, and the gains were maintained at follow-up. In a different meta-analysis on Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), from Grossman et al., they detail that our findings suggest the usefulness of MBSR as an intervention for a broad range of chronic disorders and problems. In fact, the consistent and relatively strong level of effect sizes across very different types of sample indicates that mindfulness training might enhance general features of coping with distress and disability in everyday life, as well as under more extraordinary conditions of serious disorder or stress. While these benefits are well studied and supported, a problem arises with them- MBT and MBSR can be huge time commitments for students and clients alike. Understanding how to most efficiently use mindfulness will help clinicians prescribe the correct dose to clients. Additionally, the dosage information will provide mindfulness as an option to those with very full schedules. The central question to the study is: what is the minimal dosage of mindfulness for noticeable changes in awareness and attention?

References

Grossman, P., Niemann, L., Schmidt, S., & Walach, H. (2004). Mindfulness-based stress reduction and health benefits: A meta-analysis. Journal of psychosomatic research, 57(1), 35-43. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0022-...

Khoury, B., Lecomte, T., Fortin, G., Masse, M., Therien, P., Bouchard, V., ... & Hofmann, S. G. (2013). Mindfulness-based therapy: a comprehensive meta-analysis. Clinical psychology review, 33(6), 763-771. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2013.0"

The participants for the study will be contacted via email through Northern Arizona University's Counseling Services and a section of Psychology 101 at Northern Arizona University. All participants are Northern Arizona University students. Participants must have access to the internet, email, a device to play audio, and have little-to-no experience with mindfulness practices, and be English speaking. No exclusion criteria will be set based upon gender or ethnicity.  

 Participants will be sent an informed consent form that they will review and sign. If questions arise the subjects are free to reach out to the investigators and discuss specifics of the informed consent process. The investigators will also reach out to participants inquiring if there is any point of needed clarification with the informed consent process.

The included participants will be randomly assigned into one of three groups. The first group will include participants that receive a 5 minute guided meditation audio file that they can access from their computer. The second group will receive a 15 minute guided meditation audio file that they can access from their computer. Both groups will be asked to meditate daily for a period of 14 days. The control group will not receive any mindfulness script during the study and will be offered the guided meditation resources at the end of the study. All participants will anticipate a participation time frame of 15 days. Participants will fill out demographic surveys on day 1, along with the MAAS ( Mindfulness Attention & Awareness Scale). All participants will be given access to an introduction video on mindfulness. The participants will fill out the MAAS on day 8 and 15 also. Subjects will be randomly selected to participate in a qualitative phone interview following the completion of the study."

The study has not been conducted yet and is currently going through the process of IRB approval.

The study has not been conducted yet and is currently going through the process of IRB approval.

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Join using the wonder.me application.

Andrew Bixler, ab3934@nau.edu

Joshua Tokioka, jdt78@nau.edu