A Mindfulness-based Intervention to Reduce Stress and Improve Prosocial Skills for Health-care Students

NCT07110792 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: 2021-02059
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 161
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

We aim to study the clinical immediate and long-term efficacy of a web-delivered MBCT-L protocol targeting bachelor and master health-care students in Geneva, as well as to study the correlations of clinical, neuroimaging and biomedical effects of such an intervention. Primary objective: To evaluate the immediate and long-term effect of MBCT-L on reducing perceived stress and improving pro-social skills for health-care students, compared to a control group. Secondary objective: To evaluate the immediate and long-term effect of MBCT-L on trait mindfulness, compassion, global psychological well-being, sleep quality, anxiety, depression, satisfaction in studies and resilience, to broaden the clinical understanding of the impact of such an intervention.

Conditions

Mental Health Issue

Keywords

perceived stress; prosocial skills; health students; mindfulness; compassion skills; psychological well-being; MBCT-L

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (6)

• Work package 1 (WP1) - Perceived stress

  Perceived stress as measured by the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS; score range: 0 -56; a higher score indicates a higher perceived stress level)

  T0: baseline T1: 3 months from T0 T2: 9 months from T0

• Work package 1 (WP1) - Prosocial skills

  Prosocial skills as measured by the Prosocialness Scale for Adults (PBS; score range: 16-80; a higher score indicate a greater tendency towards prosocial behaviors).

  T0: baseline T1: 3 months from T0 T2: 9 months from T0

• Work package 2 (WP2) - Socio-affective Video Task with Resting State (SoVT-Rest)

  Cortico-limbic emotion regulation network reactivity to psychological stress as measured by functional MRI (fMRI) in response to the SOVT-Rest

  T0: baseline T1: 3 months from T0 T2: 9 months from T0

• Work package 2 (WP2) - Montreal Imaging Stress Task (MIST)

  Cortico-limbic emotion regulation network reactivity to psychological stress as measured by functional MRI (fMRI) in response to the MIST

  T0: baseline T1: 3 months from T0 T2: 9 months from T0

• Work package 3 (WP3) - Metabolic

  Metabolic constitutive profiles

  T0: baseline T1: 3 months from T0 T2: 9 months from T0

• Work package 3 (WP3) - Lipid

  Lipid signalling profiles

  T0: baseline T1: 3 months from T0 T2: 9 months from T0

Secondary Outcomes (12)

• WP1 - Trait mindfulness

  T0: baseline T1: 3 months from T0 T2: 9 months from T0

• WP1 - Compassion

  T0: baseline T1: 3 months after T0 T2: 9 months after T0

• WP1 - Psychological well-being

  T0: baseline T1: 3 months from T0 T2: 9 months from T0

• WP1 - Insomnia

  T0: baseline T1: 3 months from T0 T2: 9 months from T0

• WP1 - Anxiety and depression

  T0: baseline T1: 3 months from T0 T2: 9 months from T0

Study Arms (2)

Clinical arm

EXPERIMENTAL

In this arm, participants complete clinical questionnaires

Other: Mindfulness-based Cognitive Therapy for Life (MBCT-L)

Neurobiological arm

EXPERIMENTAL

In this arm, participants complete either MRI and or blood sample

Other: Mindfulness-based Cognitive Therapy for Life (MBCT-L)

Interventions

Mindfulness-based Cognitive Therapy for Life (MBCT-L) OTHER

The MBCT-L (Bernard, Cullen \& Kuyken, 2017) intervention is an 8-week group intervention, comprising a pre-course orientation session, eight 2-hour sessions, and a half-day silent session. MBCT-L was delivered synchronously online. MBCT-L group were led by one MBCT-L instructor

Clinical arm; Neurobiological arm

Eligibility Criteria

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

You may qualify if:

• Eligibility criteria were applied to recruit second, third- or fourth-year health students in Geneva, Switzerland, who were at least 18 years old, had some interest in mindfulness, were available for the duration of the study, and agreed on refraining from regular mindfulness practice until allocated to the MBCT-L group.

You may not qualify if:

• Students were excluded if they had a current depressive episode, post-traumatic stress disorder, psychotic disorder, or substance dependency as identified through the Mini international Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI). All participants received oral and written information about the trial and signed the informed consent form prior to the beginning of the study.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• University of Geneva, Switzerland: lead
• Geneva University Hospital, Geneva, Switzerland: collaborator
• SNF Swiss National Foundation: collaborator

Study Sites (1)

University of Geneva

Geneva, Canton of Geneva, 1202, Switzerland

Location

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Psychological Well-Being

Interventions

Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Personal Satisfaction; Behavior

Intervention Hierarchy (Ancestors)

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

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: SINGLE
• Who Masked: OUTCOMES ASSESSOR
• Purpose: OTHER
• Intervention Model: SEQUENTIAL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: MD, PhD, PD

Model Details: The intervention is compared to a waiting list group.

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: July 23, 2025
• First Posted: August 8, 2025
• Study Start: February 1, 2022
• Primary Completion: August 15, 2024
• Study Completion: August 15, 2024
• Last Updated: August 8, 2025

Record last verified: 2025-07

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

CH (1)