Storytelling and Mindfulness for Graduate Student Wellbeing

Sponsor

University of Wisconsin, Madison (Other)

Overall Status

Recruiting

CT.gov ID

NCT05826860

Collaborator

(none)

250

Enrollment

Location

Arms

49.7

Anticipated Duration (Months)

Patients Per Site Per Month

Study Details

Study Description

Brief Summary

The purpose of this study is to evaluate an intervention for improving Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) graduate student wellbeing. Participants will be recruited from the University of Wisconsin-Madison graduate student body. Data will be collected from participants for up to 2 years, and the investigators anticipate that the study will last for 4 years.

Condition or Disease	Intervention/Treatment	Phase
Depression Anxiety Burnout, Student	Behavioral: Mindfulness Practice Behavioral: Storytelling Workshop	N/A

Detailed Description

The objective of this research is to evaluate the utility of storytelling and mindfulness practice in improving wellbeing in STEM graduate students. The main questions it aims to answer are:

Does engaging in mindfulness practice and storytelling increase measures of wellbeing in this population?
Does engaging in mindfulness practice and storytelling increase measures of academic success?

Participants will be asked to:

complete a survey evaluating wellbeing and academic success
attend 2 storytelling workshops
use a guided mindfulness mobile app for 2 weeks

Researchers will compare survey results from participants in the control group (no intervention, survey only) to those from participants in the intervention group (workshops, mindfulness, and survey) to see if the measures of wellbeing and academic success differ between groups.

Study Design

Study Type:

Interventional

Anticipated Enrollment :

250 participants

Allocation:

Randomized

Intervention Model:

Parallel Assignment

Masking:

None (Open Label)

Primary Purpose:

Basic Science

Official Title:

Determining the Effect of Mindfulness and Storytelling on STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, or Math) Graduate Student Wellbeing

Actual Study Start Date :

Mar 10, 2023

Anticipated Primary Completion Date :

May 1, 2027

Anticipated Study Completion Date :

May 1, 2027

Arms and Interventions

Arm	Intervention/Treatment
No Intervention: Control group Survey only, no mindfulness/storytelling intervention
Experimental: Intervention group Mindfulness and storytelling workshop intervention plus survey	Behavioral: Mindfulness Practice Participants follow guided meditations in the Healthy Minds Program (HMP) mobile phone app for at least 15 min per day, for a total of 14 days. Behavioral: Storytelling Workshop Participants attend 2 (90 min) workshops, teaching them creative writing tools and giving them opportunities to apply those tools.

Arm

Intervention/Treatment

No Intervention: Control group

Survey only, no mindfulness/storytelling intervention

Experimental: Intervention group

Mindfulness and storytelling workshop intervention plus survey

Behavioral: Mindfulness Practice

Participants follow guided meditations in the Healthy Minds Program (HMP) mobile phone app for at least 15 min per day, for a total of 14 days.

Behavioral: Storytelling Workshop

Participants attend 2 (90 min) workshops, teaching them creative writing tools and giving them opportunities to apply those tools.

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire [Baseline and 4 weeks]
This survey is a measure of environmental, interpersonal, and self-awareness. It is a 39-item self-report questionnaire rated on a 1 to 5 scale from 1 (never or very rarely true) to 5 (very often or always true). Mean score from 1-5 is reported with higher scores indicating increased mindfulness.
Perceived stress scale [Baseline and 4 weeks]
This survey is a 21 question evaluation of perceived stress. It is a 14-item self-report questionnaire rated on a 1 (Never) to 4 (Very often) scale. Mean score from 1-4 is reported with higher scores indicating increased perception of stress.
WHO-5 Well-being Index [Baseline and 4 weeks]
This is a 5 question survey of well-being developed by the World Health Organization (WHO). It is a self-report questionnaire rated on a scale from 0 (At no time) to 5 (All the time). Mean score from 0-5 is reported with higher scores indicating greater well-being.
PROMIS Depression Questionnaire [Baseline and 4 weeks]
This survey is a measure of emotional distress/depressive symptoms available from PROMIS (Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System). It is a 4-tem self-report questionnaire rated from 1 (Never) to 5 (Always). Mean score from 1-5 is reported with higher scores indicating greater emotional distress/depressive symptoms.
PROMIS Anxiety Questionnaire [Baseline and 4 weeks]
This survey is a measure of anxiety available from PROMIS (Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System). It is a 4-tem self-report questionnaire rated from 1 (Never) to 5 (Always). Mean score from 1-5 is reported with higher scores indicating greater anxiety.
PROMIS Sleep Disturbance Questionnaire [Baseline and 4 weeks]
This survey is a measure of sleep quality available from PROMIS (Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System). It is an 8-item self-report questionnaire rated from 1 (Very poor) to 5 (Very good) or 1 (Not at all) to 5 (Very much). Mean score from 1-5 is reported with higher scores indicating greater sleep disturbance.
PROMIS Global Health Questionnaire [Baseline and 4 weeks]
This survey is a measure of overall health available from PROMIS (Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System). It is a 10-item self-report questionnaire. Mean scores are reported for each of 5 sections. The first 6 questions are rated on a scale of 1 (Poor) to 5 (Excellent); higher scores indicate better health. Question 7 is rated on a scale of 1 (Not at all) to 5 (Completely), with higher scores indicating better physical health. Question 8 is rated on a scale of 1 (Always) to 5 (Never), with higher scores indicating better mental health. Question 9 is rated on a scale of 1 (Very severe) to 5 (None), with higher scores indicating greater fatigue. Question 10 is rated on a scale of 0 (No pain) to 10 (Worst pain imaginable), with higher scores indicating greater pain.
Vanderweele Flourishing Measure [Baseline and 4 weeks]
This survey is a measure of life satisfaction, measuring 6 categories of life satisfaction; mean scores for all measures are reported. It is a 12-item self-report questionnaire. Domain 1 is measured on a scale of 0 (Not satisfied at all) to 10 (Completely satisfied). Domain 2 is measured on a scale of 0 (Poor) to 10 (Excellent), with higher scores indicating greater mental and physical health. Domain 3 is measured on a scale of 0 (Not at all worthwhile) to 10 (Completely worthwhile), with higher scores indicating greater perceived meaning and purpose. Domain 4 is measured on a scale of 0 (Strongly disagree) to 10 (Strongly agree), with higher scores indicating greater mental stability. Domain 5 is measured on a scale of 0 (Strongly disagree) to 10 (Strongly agree), with higher scores indicating better quality social relationships. Domain 6 is measured on a scale of 0 (Worry all of the time) to 10 (Do not ever worry), with higher scores indicating greater financial stability.
Academic Working Alliance Inventory [Baseline and 4 weeks]
This survey is a measure of the quality of the relationship between a student and an advisor. It is a 12-item self-report questionnaire measured on a scale of 1 (Never) to 7 (Always). Mean scores are reported, with higher scores indicating a better quality relationship between student and advisor.
Academic Persistence Inventory [Baseline and 4 weeks]
This survey is a measure of the likelihood that a student will complete their degree. It is a 28-item self-report questionnaire rated on a scale of 1 (No confidence OR Strongly disagree, depending on question) to 5 (Complete confidence OR Strongly agree, depending on question). Mean scores are reported, with higher scores indicating a greater likelihood of the student completing their degree.
Copenhagen Burnout Inventory [Baseline and 4 weeks]
This survey is a measure of burnout. It is a 15-item self-report questionnaire measured on a scale of 1 (Never/almost never) to 5 (Always). Mean scores are reported, with higher scores indicating greater levels of burnout.
Healthy Minds Index [Baseline and 4 weeks]
This survey is a measure of 4 facets of mindfulness: awareness, connection, insight, and purpose. It is a 17-item self-report questionnaire measured on a scale of 0 (None of the time OR Not at all, depending on question) to 4 (All of the time OR To the highest degree, depending on question). Mean scores are reported with higher scores indicating greater mindfulness.
Change in Grade Point Average [Baseline, year one - semester one, year one - semester two, year two - semester one, year two - semester two]
This outcome is determined by the student's performance in academic courses at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. It is measured on a scale of 0 to 4, with higher scores indicating greater academic success.
Change in Dissertator status [Baseline, year one - semester one, year one - semester two, year two - semester one, year two - semester two]
This outcome is determined by the student's progress in completing their thesis research at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Achieving dissertator status indicates that the student has passed their preliminary exam for attaining a doctoral degree.
Change in Enrollment status [Baseline, year one - semester one, year one - semester two, year two - semester one, year two - semester two]
This outcome is determined by the student's progress in completing their thesis research at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. A student who is currently enrolled is assumed to be making progress towards completing their degree.

Eligibility Criteria

Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study:

18 Years and Older

Sexes Eligible for Study:

All

Accepts Healthy Volunteers:

Yes

Inclusion Criteria:

18 or older
Current graduate student in a Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) field at the University of Wisconsin-Madison
No significant experience with mindfulness practice