Promoting Resilience in Youth through Mindfulness mEditation (PRYME): Study protocol for a randomized controlled trial investigating the effects of mindfulness training as add-on to care-as-usual on internalizing problems, mental illness development, and associated brain and cognitive processes in help-seeking youth.
Maud Schepers, Paul Lagerweij, Dirk E. M. Geurts, Florian Krause, Hanneke E.m. den Ouden, Roshan Cools, Anne E. M. Speckens, Guusje Collin
BMC Psychiatry February 14, 2025 DOI: 10.1186/s12888-024-06430-7 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Randomized controlled trial Longitudinal Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 155 |
| Population | Help-seeking youth between 16 and 25 years of age with internalizing problems |
| Intervention | Learning to Offset Stress program |
| Duration | 8-week intervention, with follow-up at 2 months and 6 months after completion |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Keywords | Help-seeking Internalizing problems Mindfulness-based intervention Randomized controlled trial Rumination Self-compassion Transdiagnostic mental illness Well-being Youth |
| Citations | 2 |
| Registration | NCT05916651 |
| Key findings | The trial aims to determine how early-stage mindfulness-based intervention impacts internalizing symptom development, associated cognitive and brain processes, and mental illness progression in help-seeking youth. |
Abstract
Internalizing problems, such as worrying, anxiety and low mood, are increasingly common in youth and may constitute an early stage of mental illness development. There is thus an urgent need for effective measures to address mental health complaints as they develop and to prevent progression into more serious mental illness. Enhanced understanding of early-stage mental illness development, associated cognitive and brain processes, and their amenability to early intervention is crucial to this effort. Mindfulness-based interventions offer an accessible intervention option with demonstrated positive effects on internalizing disorders such as depression. Furthermore, mindfulness-based interventions may modulate cognitive processes and brain activity patterns associated with internalizing disorders. This study aims to determine how early-stage mindfulness-based intervention impacts internalizing symptom development, associated cognitive and brain processes, and mental illness progression in help-seeking youth. This longitudinal two-arm randomized controlled trial will be conducted in 155 help-seeking youth between 16 and 25 years of age. The investigational treatment, the Learning to Offset Stress program, is an adaptation of existing mindfulness-based programs. Developed for youth with internalizing problems, the training combines mindfulness exercises with mindful physical activity and yoga in 8 weekly 2-hour sessions. Participants are randomized to either Learning to Offset Stress program as an add on to care-as-usual, or care-as-usual-only. Assessments take place at baseline, end of treatment, and 2 months and 6 months after completion of treatment. The primary outcome is the level of internalizing problems measured with the internalizing subscale of the Adult Self Report questionnaire at end of treatment. Secondary outcomes include measures of self-compassion, rumination, experiential avoidance, and well-being. In addition, (functional) magnetic resonance imaging and computerized cognitive tasks are conducted at baseline and at end of treatment. The current randomized controlled trial aims to enhance our understanding of the trajectory of emerging mental illness, associated cognitive and brain processes, and their modulation by early-stage mindfulness-based intervention. ClinicalTrials.gov NCT05916651. Registered on 23 June 2023.
Comparable studies
Other randomized controlled trials on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alterations in Brain and Immune Function Produced by Mindfulness Meditation Healthy employees in a work environment | 2003 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 41 |
| Prevention of relapse/recurrence in major depression by mindfulness-based cognitive therapy. Recovered recurrently depressed patients | 2000 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 145 |
| Open hearts build lives: Positive emotions, induced through loving-kindness meditation, build consequential personal resources. Working adults | 2008 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 139 |
| Short-term meditation training improves attention and self-regulation Undergraduate Chinese students | 2007 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 40 |
| Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Depression: Replication and Exploration of Differential Relapse Prevention Effects. Recovered recurrently depressed patients | 2004 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 73 |
Citations in the library
Cited by 1
Cites 18
- Effectiveness of a meditation-based stress reduction program in the treatment of anxiety disorders American Journal of Psychiatry July 1, 1992
- Meditation experience is associated with differences in default mode network activity and connectivity Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences November 23, 2011
- Mindfulness-based stress reduction for the treatment of adolescent psychiatric outpatients: A randomized clinical trial. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology 2009
- The Empirical Status of Mindfulness-Based Interventions: A Systematic Review of 44 Meta-Analyses of Randomized Controlled Trials Perspectives on Psychological Science February 16, 2021
- The (In)flexible self: Psychopathology, mindfulness, and neuroscience. International journal of clinical and health psychology : IJCHP 2023
and 13 more in the library