Feasibility of an Online Mindfulness Program for Stress Management—A Randomized, Controlled Trial
Top Cited Papers
Open Access
- 1 May 2013
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Oxford University Press (OUP) in Annals of Behavioral Medicine
- Vol. 46 (2), 137-148
- https://doi.org/10.1007/s12160-013-9490-x
Abstract
Chronic stress affects many Americans. Stress management programs may be prohibitively expensive or have limited access. This study aims to determine feasibility of an 8-week Internet-based stress management program (ISM) based on mindfulness principles in reducing stress in a 12-week, parallel, randomized, controlled trial. Participants were randomly allocated to ISM, ISM plus online message board (ISM+), or control groups. Perceived stress, mindfulness, self-transcendence, psychological well-being, vitality, and quality of life were measured at baseline, week 8, and week 12 using standard validated questionnaires. ISM and ISM+ groups demonstrated statistically significant improvements compared with control on all measures except vitality and physical health. The ISM program effectively and sustainably reduced measures of stress. The magnitude of improvement is comparable to traditional mindfulness programs, although fewer participants were engaged. This feasibility study provides strong support for online stress management programs, which increase access at a fraction of cost of traditional programs.Keywords
This publication has 43 references indexed in Scilit:
- A randomized controlled pilot study of a brief web-based mindfulness trainingBMC Psychiatry, 2011
- Psychosocial working conditions and the utilization of health care servicesBMC Public Health, 2011
- Mindfulness-based stress reduction for patients with anxiety disorders: Evaluation in a randomized controlled trialBehaviour Research and Therapy, 2011
- Enhanced Psychosocial Well-Being Following Participation in a Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Program Is Associated with Increased Natural Killer Cell ActivityThe Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, 2010
- Effects of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Intervention on Psychological Well-being and Quality of Life: Is Increased Mindfulness Indeed the Mechanism?Annals of Behavioral Medicine, 2008
- Psychological Stress and DiseaseJAMA, 2007
- Interpreting clinically significant changes in patient‐reported outcomesCancer, 2007
- Protection and Damage from Acute and Chronic Stress: Allostasis and Allostatic Overload and Relevance to the Pathophysiology of Psychiatric DisordersAnnals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 2004
- The rand 36‐item health survey 1.0Health Economics, 1993
- No Adjustments Are Needed for Multiple ComparisonsEpidemiology, 1990