Efficacy of a Positive Psychology Intervention Through a Mobile App

NCT03072680 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: 16337
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 361
• Locations: 2 countries
• Sites: 2

Brief Summary

The aim of this study is to analyze the efficacy of several variations of an already validated Positive Psychology Intervention (PPI) called Best Possible Self in not flourishing population. This will be done through a mobile app specially designed for this aim. Concretely, the design will permit to compare the classic intervention (BPS Future), a new variation (BPS Past), and a combination of both components (BPS Past+Future). Participants will be randomly assigned to one of 3 conditions, in which they will practice the intervention for two weeks:

• BPS-PAST + BPS FUT condition: Participants will practice BPS Past for one week, and then they will switch to BPS future for another week.
• BPS-FUT condition: Participants will practice BPS Future for two weeks.
• CONTROL condition: Participants will practice DAILY ACTIVITIES for two weeks.

Conditions

Not Flourishing Population

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Change of Positive and Negative Affect from baseline to post-intervention

  Positive and Negative Affect Scale (PANAS; Watson, Clark \& Tellegen, 1988)

  Change from pre-intervention to post-intervention (2 weeks)

Secondary Outcomes (4)

• Wellbeing

  Change from pre-intervention to post-intervention (2 weeks)

• Optimism

  Change from pre-intervention to post-intervention (2 weeks)

• Satisfaction with life

  Change from pre-intervention to post-intervention (2 weeks)

• Self-efficacy

  Change from pre-intervention to post-intervention (2 weeks)

Study Arms (3)

BPS PAST + BPS FUT

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants practice BPS PAST the first week, then they switch fot BPS FUT.

Behavioral: BPS PAST; Behavioral: BPS FUT

BPS FUT

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants practice BPS FUT during the two weeks.

Behavioral: BPS FUT

CONTROL

ACTIVE COMPARATOR

Participants practice DAILY ACTIVITIES for the two weeks.

Behavioral: DAILY ACTIVITIES

Interventions

BPS PAST BEHAVIORAL

Participants think about themselves in a past when they displayed their best self. Then, they visualize this with the help of audio instructions. They will practice within a mobile app.

BPS PAST + BPS FUT

BPS FUT BEHAVIORAL

Participants think about themselves in the future after everything has gone as well as it possibly could. Then, they visualize this with the help of audio instructions. They will practice within a mobile app.

BPS FUT; BPS PAST + BPS FUT

DAILY ACTIVITIES BEHAVIORAL

Participants think about the activities they did during the last 24 hours. Then, they visualize this with the help of audio instructions. They will practice within a mobile app.

CONTROL

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Participants must be 18 years old or older.
• Participants must be willing to participate in the study.
• Participants must have a smartphone (Android or Ios).

You may not qualify if:

• To suffer from moderate depression or anxiety (scores of 11 or higher) measured by the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS; Zigmond \& Snaith, 1983).
• To have "Flourishing mental health" measured by the Mental Health Continuum Short Form (MHC-SF; Keyes, 2009)

Sponsors & Collaborators

• University of Valencia: lead
• University of Twente: collaborator

Study Sites (2)

University of Twente

Enschede, Overijssel, 7522, Netherlands

Location

University of Valencia

Valencia, 46010, Spain

Location

Related Publications (4)

• Meevissen YM, Peters ML, Alberts HJ. Become more optimistic by imagining a best possible self: effects of a two week intervention. J Behav Ther Exp Psychiatry. 2011 Sep;42(3):371-8. doi: 10.1016/j.jbtep.2011.02.012. Epub 2011 Mar 2.

  PMID: 21450262 BACKGROUND

• King L. The Health Benefits of Writing About Life Goals. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin 27(7): 798-807, 2001.

  BACKGROUND

• Sheldon KM, Lyubomirsky S. How to increase and sustain positive emotion: The effects of expressing gratitude and visualizing best possible selves. The Journal of Positive Psychology 1(2): 73-82, 2006.

  BACKGROUND

• Peters ML, Flink IK, Boersma K, Linton SJ. Manipulating optimism: Can imagining a best possible self be used to increase positive future expectancies? The Journal of Positive Psychology 5(3): 204-211, 2010.

  BACKGROUND

MeSH Terms

Interventions

Activities of Daily Living

Intervention Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Rehabilitation; Aftercare; Continuity of Patient Care; Patient Care; Therapeutics; Health Services; Health Care Facilities Workforce and Services

Study Officials

• Rosa Baños, PhD

  University of Valencia

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: SINGLE
• Who Masked: PARTICIPANT
• Purpose: TREATMENT
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Full Professor

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: March 2, 2017
• First Posted: March 7, 2017
• Study Start: April 23, 2019
• Primary Completion: July 27, 2019
• Study Completion: July 27, 2019
• Last Updated: September 23, 2019

Record last verified: 2019-09

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

ES (1); NL (1)