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Effectiveness of Stress-Based Mindfulness Therapy on the Students' Feelings of Loneliness and Internet Addiction

M. Ahmadi, Zahra Nikomanesh, A. Farnam

Pajouhan Scientific Journal September 1, 2021 DOI: 10.52547/psj.19.4.1 (opens in new tab)

Study at a glance

AI-extracted from the abstract
Characteristics Quasi-experimental pretest-posttest study with a control group Peer reviewed
Sample size 40
Population Male high school students in Birjand, Iran, in the 2020-21 academic year
Duration Eight sessions
Measures Russell et al. loneliness scale, Young Internet Addiction Questionnaire
Topics Addiction Meditation
Key findings Stress-based mindfulness therapy significantly reduced students' feelings of loneliness and Internet addiction compared with a no-intervention control group (P<0.001). The authors suggest the program can be used as a complementary therapy alongside other treatments to improve loneliness and reduce Internet addiction.

Abstract

Background and

Objectives: One of the most modern addictive behaviors is the phenomenon of Internet addiction, which is associated with criteria, such as withdrawal, depression, loneliness, and anxiety. This study aimed to determine the effectiveness of stress-based mindfulness therapy on the students' feelings of loneliness and Internet addiction.

Materials and Methods: This quasi-experimental study was conducted based on a pretest-posttest design with a control group. The statistical population of the study included all male high school students in Birjand in 2020-21. In total, 40 eligible individuals were selected by convenience sampling method and randomly divided into two groups of experimental (n=20) and control (n=20). The experimental group participated in eight sessions of mindfulness therapy training based on Kabat Zayn stress reduction. On the other hand, the control group did not receive any intervention. Data collection tools included the Russell et al. and Young Internet Addiction Questionnaire. The obtained data were then analyzed using mean±SD, multivariate, and univariate analysis of covariance at the significance level of α=0.05.

Results: The results showed that stress-based mindfulness therapy significantly reduced the students' feelings of loneliness and Internet addiction (P<0.001).

Conclusions: According to the results of the study, stress-based mindfulness therapy can be used as a complementary therapy along with other therapies to improve loneliness and reduce students' Internet addiction.

Comparable studies

Other experimental studies on addiction, most cited first.

Study Year Design Participants
Mindfulness meditation and substance use in an incarcerated population. Incarcerated population 2006 Quasi-experimental with treatment-as-usual control condition
Neural Correlates of Ongoing Conscious Experience: Both Task-Unrelatedness and Stimulus-Independence Are Related to Default Network Activity Participants performing a go/no-go task while undergoing functional neuroimaging 2011 Observational neuroimaging study using thought-probes during a go/no-go task
Mindful attention reduces neural and self-reported cue-induced craving in smokers Treatment-seeking smokers, meditation-naïve, 12-hour abstinent 2011 Experimental study n = 47
DOI-Induced Activation of the Cortex: Dependence on 5-HT2AHeteroceptors on Thalamocortical Glutamatergic Neurons Rat 2000 Experimental study
Noribogaine is a G-protein biased κ-opioid receptor agonist. 2015 Experimental study with binding experiments, functional assays, and computational simulations

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