Effectiveness of a Brief Online Mindfulness-Based Intervention for University Students

Abstract

Objectives The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a dramatic increase in Web-based education, lacking face-to-face student–teacher and student–student interaction, and consequently impairing students’ sense of belonging to a community, interoceptive awareness, and academic self-efficacy. This study examined how a brief mindfulness-based intervention in an online university course can be effective in enhancing attention resources, developing a stronger sense of academic self-efficacy, and improving the sense of belonging to a community, which represent critical factors affecting students’ participation in online and blended courses. Method Four-hundred and eighty-six participants (Mage 22.88) completed a battery of measures at pre- and post-treatment. One class (experimental group) participated in a brief online mindfulness-based intervention (42%), whereas the other one (control group) did not take part in the intervention (58%). The intervention included breathing meditation at the beginning of class, sharing of experiences, mini-lectures on mindfulness, and daily practice, and lasted for 28 consecutive days. Results Participants in the experimental group when compared to controls showed a significant increase in the feeling of influencing the course activities (F = 9.628; p < 0.005), in the self-regulation of attention (F = 19.133; p < 0.001), in academic self-efficacy (F = 9.220; p < 0.005), and, particularly, in their self-efficacy in regulating learning (F = 12.942; p < 0.001). The students’ adherence to the assigned practice could partially explain the effectiveness of the intervention. Conclusions This study offers useful clues about the effectiveness of mindfulness interventions in the classroom in enhancing sense of belonging to a community, attention grounded in bodily sensations, and academic self-efficacy. Preregistration This study is not preregistered.

Mindfulness to improve the mental health of university students. A systematic review and meta-analysis

“…Finally, 37 reports were assessed for eligibility, out of which 16 were excluded, after completing this evaluation, the remaining articles were carefully analyzed to determine their eligibility. As a result, 21 articles were identified that met the established inclusion criteria ( Figure 1 ) ( 24 , 30 – 49 ), 17 of these studies underwent quantitative synthesis in the form of meta-analysis.…”

“…In this systematic review, selected articles corresponding to randomized controlled clinical trials published in English in the last decade were included, with the following distribution of years: 2013 ( 35 ), 2014 ( 37 , 39 , 47 ), 2016 ( 30 , 39 ), 2017 ( 38 , 40 ), 2018 ( 31 ), 2020 ( 32 , 43 , 45 ), 2021 ( 36 , 44 , 46 , 48 , 49 ), 2022 ( 33 , 42 ), and 2023 ( 24 , 34 ). The countries of origin of the articles include Spain with four articles ( 32 , 34 , 47 , 49 ), three articles from the USA ( 37 , 42 , 43 ), two from China ( 44 , 46 ), two from Canada ( 45 , 48 ), and one from each of the following countries: Taiwan ( 30 ), Australia ( 31 ), the United Kingdom ( 24 ), Switzerland ( 33 ), Norway ( 35 ), Brazil ( 36 ), Singapore ( 38 ), Germany ( 39 ), Netherlands ( 40 ), and South Korea ( 41 ).…”

“…Of the 21 articles included in this review, 19 demonstrated that mindfulness interventions had a significant positive effect on students' mental health ( 24 , 30 – 33 , 37 – 49 ). Table 2 shows the details of these studies.…”

“…All the investigations that included the depression variable in the analysis found that an eight-week intervention was successful. Yuan et al ( 46 ) and Gallego et al ( 47 ) reported significant findings ( p > 0.01) using the Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS) for both virtual ( 23 ) and face-to-face interventions ( 24 ). Vorontsova-Wenger et al ( 33 ) used the French version of the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-2), finding significant differences ( p < 0.001) intra and intergroup with scores for IG in pre-intervention 14.16 (12.336) vs. post 6.00 (12.336) and for pre-intervention CG 0.84 (12.336) vs. post 10.60 (12.336).…”

“…For example, a study of more than 600 students in the United Kingdom found that 8-week mindfulness courses could prevent mental illness and improve student wellbeing ( 23 ). Additionally, evaluation of university mindfulness programs has shown improvements in students' resilience, self-awareness, and concentration, which benefits their learning experience and work management ( 24 ). These results highlight the importance of developing effective motivational programs to foster self-acceptance and personal growth in higher education ( 25 ).…”