Effects of an eight-week, online mindfulness program on anxiety and depression in university students during COVID-19: A randomized controlled trial

Simonsson, Otto; Bazin, Olivier; Fisher, Stephen; Goldberg, Simon B.

doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2021.114222

Cited by 66 publications

(82 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…All incorporated studies assessed the effectiveness of internet-based psychological intervention programs for reducing stress, anxiety, and depression among university students during COVID-19 social distancing. Seven studies were conducted by researchers in American universities [ 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 ], two studies in Asian universities [ 39 , 40 ], and one study in an African university [ 41 ]. Meta-analyses were performed separately on interventions for reducing stress, anxiety, and depression ( Table 1 ).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A total of 5086 students 18 years or older participated in the studies. Three of the studies reported an age range of participants [ 37 , 39 , 41 ], while the others just reported that students were 18 years or older. Most of the included studies were conducted with undergraduate students, while one study [ 39 ] featured graduate students.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…All 10 studies mentioned intervention providers (through online formats), which were categorized as follows: Isha Hatha yoga teacher [ 32 ]; college counselor [ 33 ]; instructor [ 34 , 41 ]; expert [ 40 ]; psychologist [ 35 , 39 ]; mindfulness teacher [ 37 ]; multidisciplinary team, including a study member and a mindfulness teacher, for the breathing application [ 36 ]; and a multidisciplinary team, including a psychologist and a mindfulness teacher [ 38 ]. Further, all 10 studies used internet-based/video-based interventions.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“… The effects of psychological interventions on reducing anxiety among university students during COVID-19 in the included randomized controlled trials [ 32 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 ]. …”

Section: Figurementioning

confidence: 99%

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Meta-Analysis of Psychological Interventions for Reducing Stress, Anxiety, and Depression among University Students during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Malinauskas

Malinauskienė

2022

IJERPH

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(1) Background: The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of internet-based intervention programs for reducing stress, anxiety, and depression among university students during the COVID-19 pandemic by conducting a meta-analysis. (2) Methods: Searches were conducted in the following databases: MEDLINE, EbscoHost Academic Search Ultimate, and PsycArticles, using a combination of “Covid-19 AND ‘Randomized Controlled Trial’ AND students”, as well as a combination of the following search terms: “internet”, “online”, “treat_”, “psycholog_”, “intervention”, “program_”, “stress_”, “depress_”, “anxiety”, “university”, “college”, ”freshm_”, “sophomore_”, and “undergraduat_”. The population, intervention, control, outcomes, and study design (PICOS) framework was used (P (population): university students during the COVID-19 pandemic; I (intervention): internet-based intervention programs for reducing stress, anxiety, and depression; C (control): no intervention, usual care, or on a waiting list; O (outcomes): stress, anxiety, and depression indicators; S (study design): meta-analysis including only randomized controlled trials (RCTs)). A meta-analysis was performed on the 10 retrieved studies published between 2021 and 2022. Only RCTs were analyzed. (3) Results: All 10 analyzed papers revealed a trend in the effectiveness of internet-based intervention for reducing stress, anxiety, and depression in university students during COVID-19. Significant effects from the included RCTs with interventions for reducing stress and depression were established. (4) Conclusions: Psychological internet-based interventions may help to reduce depression and stress among university students; however, more research is needed to determine their effectiveness in reducing anxiety.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Figurementioning

confidence: 99%

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Meta-Analysis of Psychological Interventions for Reducing Stress, Anxiety, and Depression among University Students during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Malinauskas

Malinauskienė

2022

IJERPH

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“…Examination of the forest plot showed no potential study outliers. After removing one study by Simonsson et al [ 37 ] in sensitivity analysis, the pooled effect was reduced to insignificance.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effectiveness of online mindfulness-based interventions in improving mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Witarto

Visuddho²,

Witarto³

et al. 2022

PLoS ONE

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Introduction Psychotherapies, such as mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs), are currently needed to tackle mental health problems. Online MBIs have become promising since face-to-face interventions are limited during the COVID-19 pandemic due to lockdown and social distancing. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to investigate the effect of online MBIs in improving mental health, mainly depression, anxiety, and stress. Materials and methods A systematic literature search was conducted according to the PRISMA 2020 guidelines on several databases for eligible studies up to October 17, 2021. Study quality was assessed using the Cochrane’s Risk of Bias 2 tool. Effect sizes were presented as standardized mean difference (Hedges’ g) between the online MBIs and control groups at post-test and follow-up using a random-effects model. Results Eight randomized controlled trials involving 868 participants were included in this meta-analysis. The pooled adherence rate to online MBIs was 94% (95% CI = 91% to 98%). The findings revealed that online MBIs had a statistically significant small to moderate effect in reducing depression (g = -0.32; 95% CI = -0.49 to -0.14; I2 = 0%), a small effect on anxiety (g = -0.25; 95% CI = -0.43 to -0.06; I2 = 27%), and a moderate effect on stress (g = -0.62; 95% CI = -1.09 to -0.16; I2 = 83%). In addition, significant small effects at follow-up were observed for depression (g = -0.26; 95% CI = -0.48 to -0.04; I2 = 0%) and anxiety (g = -0.28; 95% CI = -0.48 to -0.08; I2 = 0%), but not for stress. Conclusion Online MBIs have beneficial effects on mental health, particularly depression, anxiety, and stress, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Given the limitations of the current study, future trials that specifically consider potential effect influencing factors, longer follow-up evaluation, and methodological quality are warranted.

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Effects of mindfulness‐based interventions on psychological outcomes in college and university students during COVID‐19 pandemics: A systematic review and meta‐analysis

et al. 2023

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Objective We synthesized the effects of mindfulness‐based interventions (MBIs) on psychological outcomes in college and university students during the COVID‐19 pandemic. Method Ten electronic databases were searched from inception to December 2021. We reviewed studies with college and university students receiving MBIs with psychological outcomes. We only reviewed studies written in English. A random‐effects model was used to compute the effect size. Results Overall, MBIs showed a significantly moderate improvement in anxiety (g = 0.612, 95% CI: 0.288−0.936, I2 = 77%); depression (g = 0.372, 95% CI: 0.032−0.713, I2 = 72%); and mindfulness (g = 0.392, 95% CI:0.102−0.695, I2 = 64%) compared with control groups, while these interventions had a small effect in reducing stress, but not a significant one (g = 0.295, 95% CI: −0.088 to 0.676, I2 = 77%) compared with control groups. Conclusion MBIs significantly improved psychological outcomes among college and university students during the COVID‐19 pandemic. Clinicians and health providers should consider using MBIs as alternative complementary treatment for improving and preventing anxiety and depression in college and university students during COVID‐19. Clinical Relevance The use of MBIs for college and university students is an effective method to decrease anxiety, depressive symptoms, and increase mindfulness. MBIs would become a very useful means of alternative complementary treatment in mental health and clinical psychiatry

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Effects of an eight-week, online mindfulness program on anxiety and depression in university students during COVID-19: A randomized controlled trial

Cited by 66 publications

References 23 publications

Meta-Analysis of Psychological Interventions for Reducing Stress, Anxiety, and Depression among University Students during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Meta-Analysis of Psychological Interventions for Reducing Stress, Anxiety, and Depression among University Students during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Effectiveness of online mindfulness-based interventions in improving mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Effects of mindfulness‐based interventions on psychological outcomes in college and university students during COVID‐19 pandemics: A systematic review and meta‐analysis

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