The Effect of Short-term Mindfulness-based Selfhelp Training on Anxiety State of College Students
Liu Wenshuang, Sun Yuhao, Tang Guangzheng, Lu Ningyan
Theory and Practice of Psychological Counseling 2023 DOI: 10.35534/tppc.0501002 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Randomized controlled trial Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 63 |
| Population | College students with anxiety relief need |
| Intervention | Short-term Mindfulness-Based Self-Help (MBSH) |
| Dose | about 10 minutes a day |
| Duration | 4-week intervention with 4-week follow-up (week 8) |
| Measures | Mindful Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS), Self-rating Anxiety Scale (SAS), Life Satisfaction Scale (SWLS) |
| Topics | Anxiety Meditation |
| Key findings | Brief daily self-help mindfulness training (about 10 minutes for 4 weeks) reduced anxiety and increased mindfulness and life satisfaction in college students by the end of training compared with no intervention. At 4-week follow-up, only the life satisfaction advantage persisted, while anxiety and mindfulness differences were no longer significant, suggesting the training improves and maintains life satisfaction more durably than it maintains anxiety relief. |
Abstract
Objective: To investigate the intervention effect of Short-term Mindfulness-Based Self-Help (MBSH) on anxiety of college students.
Methods: 63 college students with anxiety relief need were recruited and randomly divided into experimental group and control group. The experimental group received self-help mindfulness training of about 10 minutes a day for 4 weeks, while the control group did not receive any intervention. The Mindful Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS), Self-rating Anxiety Scale (SAS) and Life Satisfaction Scale (SWLS) were used to assess the mental state of college students before training (week 0), during training (week 2), at the end of training (week 4) and at 4-week follow-up (week 8), respectively. SPSS was used for data analysis.
Results: At week 0, there was no significant difference in MAAS [55.00±9.59 points, 55.74±9.18 points], SAS [44.41±9.37 points, 44.10±8.97 points] and SWLS [20.69±4.95 points, 18.48±5.32 points] between experimental group and control group. t=-0.31, 0.13, 1.70, p>0.05. In week 2, SWLS of the experimental group was significantly higher than that of the control group [23.13±5.24 points, 18.07±4.93 points]. In week 4, SWLS and MAAS [24.63±6.49 points, 64.19±10.19 points] of the experimental group were higher than those of the control group [19.77±4.59 points, 54.97±10.74 points], and SAS was significantly lower than that of the control group [38.47±7.81 points, 45.29±9.86 points]. In week 8, only SWLS in the experimental group was still significantly higher than that in the control group [24.69±5.66 points, 20.42±4.66 points], while MAAS [61.59±9.92 points, 57.13±10.68 points] and SAS [39.53±9.02 points, 43.36±10.60 points] showed no significant difference between the two groups.
Conclusions: This study suggests that the short-term MBSH of 10 minutes a day can effectively relieve the anxiety of college students and improve and maintain life satisfaction. Moreover, the training can improve life satisfaction faster and maintain longer, which can be used as a simple and effective self-help method for healthy people to deal with anxiety.
Comparable studies
Other randomized controlled trials on anxiety, most cited first.