Coping, Mental Health Wellness 1, Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic
Conditions
Keywords
mindfulness, intervention, african american, youth, stress, poverty
Brief summary
Effective strategies to ameliorate the negative effects of stressful urban living are greatly needed. D-Stress Baltimore (DSB) is an evidence-based mindfulness-based instructional program of stress-reduction techniques, found to reduce mental health problems across many adult populations. The investigators propose to conduct a randomized controlled trial of the 12-week school-based DSB program compared with a 12-week school-based health education control program at Elev8 schools among 5th-8th graders to assess if DSB program is beneficial for mental health and behavioral problems among public middle-school students.
Detailed description
Urban youth in Baltimore City are under significant and inevitable stresses, including violent neighborhoods, failing schools, and interpersonal conflict. Effective strategies to ameliorate the negative effects of stressful urban living are greatly needed. D-Stress Baltimore (DSB) is an evidence-based mindfulness-based instructional program of stress-reduction techniques which has been found to be beneficial for adults in decreasing anxiety and depression, improving positive emotions, and reducing anger. The investigators propose to conduct a randomized controlled trial of the 12-week school-based DSB program compared with a 12-week school-based health education control program at Elev8 schools among 5th-8th graders. The investigators hypothesize that the D-Stress Baltimore Program will reduce negative emotions, including hostility, and improve coping.
Interventions
BEHAVIORALMindfulness Instruction
Age-appropriate instruction on mindfulness concepts and practices, adapted from the mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) program. Classes are 45-90 minutes each and held weekly for 12 weeks.
BEHAVIORALHealth Education
Age-appropriate health education concepts and topics. Classes are 45-90 minutes each and held weekly for 12 weeks.
Sponsors
Elev8 Baltimore
Abell Foundation
University of Chicago
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
Johns Hopkins University
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
CROSSOVER
Primary purpose
PREVENTION
Masking
DOUBLE (Investigator, Outcomes Assessor)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
9 Years to 18 Years
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
* 5th - 8th graders in select Baltimore City schools
Exclusion criteria
* N/A
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Depressive symptoms | 9 months | Assessment of impact of Mindfulness instruction versus Health Education instruction as measured by scores on mental health questionnaire administered at baseline, and then 3 and 9 months later. Children's Depression Inventory - Short Form (CDI-S) |
| Affect Measures: Positive and Negative Affect Scale; State Trait Anger Expressivity Index; Differential Emotions Scale | 9 months | Assessment of impact of Mindfulness instruction versus Health Education instruction as measured by scores on mental health questionnaire administered at baseline, and then 3 and 9 months later. |
| Anxiety assessed by Multidimensional Anxiety Scale of Childhood. | 9 months | Assessment of impact of Mindfulness instruction versus Health Education instruction as measured by scores on mental health questionnaire administered at baseline, and then 3 and 9 months later. |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Coping Questionnaire | 9 months | Assessment of impact of Mindfulness instruction versus Health Education instruction on coping as measured by scores on questionnaire administered at baseline, and then 3 and 9 months later. Specific coping measures used are: Brief COPE Inventory; the Coping Self-Efficacy Scale (CSE); and Children's Response Style Questionnaire (CRSQ). |
| Post-traumatic stress symptoms | 9 months | Assessment of impact of Mindfulness instruction versus Health Education instruction as measured by scores on questionnaire administered at baseline, and then 3 and 9 months later. Children's Post-traumatic Stress Symptoms |
Countries
United States
Outcome results
None listed