The evaluation of a mind/body intervention to reduce psychological distress and perceived stress in college students.

Full Abstract

The authors examined the effect of a 6-week mind/body intervention on college students' psychological distress, anxiety, and perception of stress. One hundred twenty-eight students were randomly assigned to an experimental group (n = 63) or a waitlist control group (n = 65). The experimental group received 6 90-minute group-training sessions in the relaxation response and cognitive behavioral skills. The Symptom Checklist-90-Revised, Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, and the Perceived Stress Scale were used to assess the students' psychological state before and after the intervention. Ninety students (70% of the initial sample) completed the postassessment measure. Significantly greater reductions in psychological distress, state anxiety, and perceived stress were found in the experimental group. This brief mind/body training may be useful as a preventive intervention for college students, according to the authors, who called for further research to determine whether the observed treatment effect can be sustained over a longer period of time.

Author information

Author/s: Deckro, Gloria R (GR); Ballinger, Keli M (KM); Hoyt, Michael (M); Wilcher, Marilyn (M); Dusek, Jeffery (J); Myers, Patricia (P); Greenberg, Beth (B); Rosenthal, David S (DS); Benson, Herbert (H);

Affiliation: Mind/Body Medical Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02215, USA. gdeckro(-atsign-)caregroup.harvard.edu

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Clinical Trial; Comparative Study; Evaluation Studies; Journal Article; Randomized Controlled Trial

Journal: Journal of American college health : J of ACH (J Am Coll Health), published in United States. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2002-May; vol 50 (issue 6) : pp 281-7

Dates: Created 2003/04/18; Completed 2003/05/15; Revised 2008/11/21;

PMID: 12701653, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 2/18/2009, IMS Date: 18 Feb 2009 00:00:00)

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

External Links for this article
(including full text providers, if available):

Click Electronic Full-text Provider Links to see options for finding the electronic full text links to this article. Note there may be a subscription or fee required for access to the full text. See our FAQ for information on finding FREE full text articles.

This article may also be located in paper journal collections available in many libraries. Use the Journal and Publication Information above to find the full article.