Effects of A Smartphone-Delivered Mindfulness Program on Pre-Competition Anxiety and Self-Efficacy in Competitive Sprinters
Bo Wang, Zhuzhu Wang, Xiaoming Guan
Journal of Sports Science and Medicine October 5, 2026 DOI: 10.52082/jssm.2026.892 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Randomized controlled trial Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 70 |
| Population | Track athletes |
| Duration | 8-week intervention with 12-week follow-up |
| Topics | Anxiety Meditation |
| Key findings | The app-based mental training program reduced self-reported cognitive worry and somatic arousal and increased perceived capability and dispositional mindfulness relative to a waitlist control, with gains maintained at 12-week follow-up. The authors caution that objective performance and physiological anxiety measures were not collected. |
Abstract
This study tested a self-report psychological intervention in an 8-week app-based mental training program (MindSprint) using a two-arm, parallel randomized controlled trial involving 70 track athletes allocated to an intervention group (n = 35) or waitlist control (n = 35) and assessed at baseline (T0), week 4 (T1), week 8 (T2), and week 12 follow-up (T3). Five participants withdrew from the intervention group (14.3%) and three from the control group (8.6%); intention-to-treat analyses were conducted. Engagement was high (46.4 ± 7.3 of 56 sessions; 5.8 ± 1.3 sessions/week; 515.2 ± 120.4 min total practice; adherence 82.9%). Mixed-model ANOVAs showed significant group × time effects for cognitive state worry (F(3, 204) = 18.33, p < .001, ηp2 = .212) and somatic arousal (F(3, 204) = 22.71, p < .001, ηp2 = .250). From T0 to T2, the intervention group decreased cognitive scores from 24.8 ± 4.1 to 16.5 ± 3.5 and somatic scores from 23.5 ± 4.5 to 15.1 ± 3.9, with effects maintained at T3 (17.1 ± 3.6; 15.8 ± 4.0); controls remained essentially unchanged across timepoints. Perceived capability improved in the intervention group (105.2 ± 12.8 to 128.4 ± 10.5 at T2; F(3, 204) = 15.96, p < .001, ηp2 = .190) and was sustained at follow-up (126.9 ± 11.1), while controls stayed stable (approximately 104-106). Dispositional mindfulness increased (118.6 ± 14.2 to 145.2 ± 11.8; F(3, 204) = 25.11, p < .001, ηp2 = .269), and improvements in these skills correlated with reductions in cognitive (r = -.65) and somatic (r = -.61) indices and gains in perceived capability (r = .59) (all p < .001). Because objective sprint performance and physiological anxiety markers were not measured, the findings should be interpreted as evidence for changes in self-reported psychological outcomes.
Comparable studies
Other randomized controlled trials on anxiety, most cited first.