Evaluating an ACT Self-help Book for University Students

NCT06207214 | Active Not Recruiting

• 1 other identifier: ACTSelfHelpBookStudents2023
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 8
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

Background to the project: More and more university students are reporting poor mental health, which has resulted in long waiting lists for student support services. Given this context, self-help solutions, (which means giving students ideas in books/apps/websites that they can try in their own time to help with their problems), are becoming more important. Rationale for the project: There are many self-help resources for students but not many of them are well-researched. This research project will test a self-help book called "The Unbreakable Student: 6 Rules for Staying Sane at University". Methodology: A small group of students (approximately 12) will complete questionnaires at three time points (prior to reading the book, whilst reading the book and after reading the book). They will also answer four questions sent via text message, every three days throughout the study. These will relate to a particular aspect of university life which they have identified as stressful. They will also be interviewed afterwards, to give information about their experiences of reading the book and use of the end of chapter tasks etc. Purpose: The purpose is to find out if the book is helpful for students and, if so, which parts were the most helpful. Hypotheses: The book will help students to be less bothered by difficult thoughts, such that they might find them less interfering and may feel more engaged in meaningful activities. The book will also improve student wellbeing.

Conditions

Well-Being, Psychological

Keywords

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy; Self-help; University students; Single Case Design

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (3)

• Frequency of thoughts about idiosyncratic stressor.

  Participants will be asked to rate how often they have had thoughts about their idiosyncratic stressor, on a scale of 0-10 (0 = not very often at all, 10 = all the time).

  Participants will complete this measure every 3 days, for the duration of their baseline phase (randomly allocated) and for the duration of the intervention phase (8 weeks).

• Impact of thoughts about idiosyncratic stressor.

  Participants will be asked to rate how interfering their thoughts about their idiosyncratic stressor have been, on a scale of 0-10 (0 = not interfering at all, 10 = very interfering).

  Participants will complete this measure every 3 days, for the duration of their baseline phase (randomly allocated) and for the duration of the intervention phase (8 weeks).

• Engagement in meaningful activities.

  Participants will be asked to rate how engaged they feel in meaningful activities, in spite of any thoughts about their idiosyncratic stressor, on a scale of 0-10 (0 = not very engaged, 10 = fully engaged).

  Participants will complete this measure every 3 days, for the duration of their baseline phase (randomly allocated) and for the duration of the intervention phase (8 weeks).

Secondary Outcomes (2)

• Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale (WEMWBS)

  Baseline, mid-intervention (week 4 of the book reading phase) and follow-up (1 week after completing the book reading phase).

• Comprehensive assessment of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy processes (CompACT)

  Baseline, mid-intervention (week 4 of the book reading phase) and follow-up (1 week after completing the book reading phase).

Study Arms (1)

Self-help book for University Students

EXPERIMENTAL

The Unbreakable Student: 6 Rules for Staying Sane at University by Dr Nic Hooper.

Other: Self-help book for university students.

Interventions

Self-help book for university students. OTHER

The intervention being tested, is a self-help book for university students based on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. The book was published in 2021 and is called "The Unbreakable Student: 6 Rules for Staying Sane at University". The book is by Dr Nic Hooper. The self-help book will be posted in paper form to all participants. There are 8 chapters in the book and participants will be given eight weeks to read the book at home (with a suggestion of reading one chapter per week).

Self-help book for University Students

Eligibility Criteria

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

You may qualify if:

• Registered as a current Cardiff University student.
• Proficient in English.
• Have an adequate reading level.
• Identify as experiencing a non-clinical, university or study related difficulty. Examples include: Exam/presentation nerves, feelings of loneliness/stress/anxiety/low mood, binge drinking, procrastination, feelings of burnout, academic/course worries, unhealthy lifestyle choices.

You may not qualify if:

• Must not be a Cardiff University psychology student, due to potential social desirability bias, associated with being from the same school as the book author.
• Must not have read "The Unbreakable Student: 6 Rules for Staying Sane at University".
• Must not be in concurrent research studies/receiving concurrent psychological support, including psychoeducational, therapeutic or self-help interventions. This is to ensure valid conclusions can be drawn about the impact of the book.
• Must not present with heightened risk during recruitment, as screened for by the CORE-10. This will be defined as a score within the moderate-severe/severe range (which is a score of 20 or higher) and/or indication of suicidal intent as indicated on the risk item. This is to ensure participant safety, whilst also ensuring a sample that reflects current levels of student distress. Any students not eligible due to risk will be signposted to services such as student support or their General Practitioner (GP).

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Cardiff University: lead

Study Sites (1)

Based at Cardiff University (study to be completed remotely)

Cardiff, United Kingdom

Location

Related Publications (6)

• Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative research in psychology, 3(2), 77-101. https://doi.org/10.1191/1478088706qp063oa

  BACKGROUND

• Morley S. (2017). Single case methods in clinical psychology: A practical guide. Routledge.

  BACKGROUND

• Kazdin AE. Single-case experimental designs. Evaluating interventions in research and clinical practice. Behav Res Ther. 2019 Jun;117:3-17. doi: 10.1016/j.brat.2018.11.015. Epub 2018 Dec 2.

  PMID: 30527785 BACKGROUND

• Stewart-Brown S, Evans J, Patterson J, Petersen S, Doll H, Balding J, Regis D. The health of students in institutes of higher education: an important and neglected public health problem? J Public Health Med. 2000 Dec;22(4):492-9. doi: 10.1093/pubmed/22.4.492.

  PMID: 11192277 BACKGROUND

• Jacobson NS, Truax P. Clinical significance: a statistical approach to defining meaningful change in psychotherapy research. J Consult Clin Psychol. 1991 Feb;59(1):12-9. doi: 10.1037//0022-006x.59.1.12.

  PMID: 2002127 BACKGROUND

• Morley, S., Dowzer, C.N. (2014) Manual for the Leeds Reliable Change Indicator: Simple excel applications for the analysis of individual patient and group data. University of Leeds, Leeds, UK.

  BACKGROUND

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Psychological Well-Being

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Personal Satisfaction; Behavior

Study Officials

• Victoria Phillips

  Cardiff University

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: NA
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: OTHER
• Intervention Model: SINGLE GROUP
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Principal Investigator (Trainee Clinical Psychologist)

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: November 22, 2023
• First Posted: January 16, 2024
• Study Start: February 24, 2024
• Primary Completion: August 1, 2024
• Study Completion: November 1, 2024
• Last Updated: July 18, 2024

Record last verified: 2024-07

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will share
• Shared Documents: STUDY PROTOCOL, SAP
• Time Frame: Any anonymised data which is included as part of the final report, will be made available from the point of publication and will be in the public domain indefinitely. All other data stored by Cardiff University, will be managed in line with the Records Retention Schedule.

Locations

GB (1)