Does Mindfulness Training Change the Processing of Social Threat?

NCT00992875 | Completed DMC

• 2 other identifiers: 2008A057212FP7-PEOPLE-IOF-2008: 236975
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 28
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

Training in mindfulness, the non-judgmental observation of experiences as they arise in the present moment, has been increasingly and successfully applied to the treatment of normative stress conditions and mental disorders. Yet, the neurological mechanisms that underlie the reported improvements are still largely unknown. This longitudinal study will investigate the influence of mindfulness training on a key underpinning of mental health, namely emotion regulation, and its associated brain activity. Healthy participants will be randomly assigned to either a validated eight week Mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) program or to a control condition. In a pre-post investigation, participants' subjective reactions to aversive emotional stimuli (affective facial expressions) will be assessed, as will the associated brain activation using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). The investigators hypothesize that after the training the MBSR participants will rate the pictures as less aversive compared to control participants. Furthermore, the MBSR participants will show a patter of brain activation indicative of improved emotion regulation, relative to control participants. Finally, the effect of MBSR on the gray matter structure of the brain will be investigated.

Conditions

Healthy; Stress

Keywords

Healthy but stressed individuals

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• BOLD signal on a 1.5T MRI scanner

  the second time-point will take place eight weeks after the first data collection

Interventions

Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction BEHAVIORAL

Behavioral intervention, mindfulness meditation in form of yoga, sitting meditation, body scan and mindfulness to routine activities

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 22 Years - 60 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64)

You may qualify if:

• no previous significant meditation or yoga experience
• eligible for MRI scanning (no metallic implants, not pregnant, not claustrophobic)
• no significant previous meditation or yoga experience

You may not qualify if:

• DSM-IV diagnosis for depression, manic episodes, GAD, social phobia, anorexia, bulimia, schizophrenia, ADHD, substance dependency/abuse, suicidality
• ineligible for MRI scanning (metallic implants, pregnant, claustrophobic)

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Massachusetts General Hospital: lead
• Mind and Life Institute, Hadley, Massachusetts: collaborator
• European Commission: collaborator

Study Sites (1)

Massachusetts General Hospital

Charlestown, Massachusetts, 02129, United States

Location

Related Links

• Related Info

MeSH Terms

Interventions

Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction

Intervention Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Mindfulness; Cognitive Behavioral Therapy; Behavior Therapy; Psychotherapy; Behavioral Disciplines and Activities

Study Officials

• Sara W Lazar, PhD

  Massachusetts General Hospital

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: BASIC SCIENCE
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Research Fellow

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: September 28, 2009
• First Posted: October 9, 2009
• Study Start: January 1, 2009
• Primary Completion: February 1, 2011
• Study Completion: February 1, 2011
• Last Updated: May 7, 2012

Record last verified: 2012-05

Locations

US (1)