NCT04081662

Examining the Efficacy of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) Microinterventions for Distressed First-Generation College Students

• Status: Completed
• Phase: Phase 1
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 36 (actual)
• Sponsor: University of Wisconsin, Madison · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 18 Years – 19 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Accepted

Summary

This research study aims to evaluate the feasibility, safety, and effectiveness of a micro-randomized acceptance and commitment therapy-based (ACT-based) intervention that is delivered to distressed first-generation college students.

Detailed description

The transition to college is associated with a number of changes in health behaviors and mental health functioning, with 50% of college students meeting criteria for a psychiatric disorder. In particular, first-generation college students may be at particular risk for increased stress and mental health difficulties. The development of effective psychotherapeutic interventions is essential in providing adequate care to young adults during the transitional years of college. Delivery of these interventions via acceptable and feasible modalities for this population is also of utmost importance so that utilization and engagement are prioritized. Brief interventions have been a point of emphasis in recent years from the perspective of patient and provider efficiency, as well as many studies indicating effectiveness of brief interventions in creating and sustaining clinical levels of change. The current study seeks to evaluate the effectiveness of brief interventions delivered via a smartphone app, or "microinterventions", based in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). ACT is a cognitive-behavioral therapy that seeks to promote psychological flexibility. ACT is transdiagnostic, meaning that it is designed to target human suffering, rather than a particular psychological or physical disorder. ACT targets experiential avoidance, which is the inability or unwillingness to make contact with painful experiences (e.g., thoughts, emotions, memories. Avoidance provides short-term relief, but exacerbates the long-term experience of the avoided stimulus in terms of intensity and duration. The microintervention in this study will consist of one of 84 prompts that aim to target one of 6 processes targeted in ACT. For example, one prompt is "Do your current actions align with what matters most to you?" Delivery of these prompts (e.g., whether and when to deliver which prompt) is randomized to allow for secondary analyses of optimal delivery of the microintervention in addition to primary analyses of its effectiveness.

Conditions

• Psychological Distress
• Self-Assessment
• Mood Change

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
BEHAVIORAL	compACT Intervention	The mobile intervention in this study consists of two components: 1) self-monitoring and 2) an ACT-based microintervention. Self-monitoring: twice daily, participants will complete self-reports of distress, depressive symptoms, and activity through the mobile app Lorevimo. Microintervention: The microintervention will consist of one of 84 prompts that aim to target one of 6 processes targeted in ACT (contacting the present moment, defusion, acceptance, self-as-context, values, and committed action). At each time-point, participants have a 50% chance of receiving a microintervention question along with the daily self-monitoring assessments.

Timeline

• Start date: 2019-10-18
• Primary completion: 2020-11-20
• Completion: 2021-05-11
• First posted: 2019-09-09
• Last updated: 2021-08-06

Locations

1 site across 1 country: United States