JMIR research protocols
June 30, 2025
Ravi Shankar, Anjali Bundele, Amartya Mukhopadhyay
8 citations
Virtual reality (VR) mindfulness interventions may improve mental health outcomes by enhancing engagement and reducing dropout rates compared to traditional methods. Meta-analyses show VR interventions achieve higher engagement and lower dropout, but systematic evaluation of VR-based mindfulness remains limited. This systematic review protocol will assess whether VR-based mindfulness reduces stress, anxiety, and depression and improves well-being in adults aged 18–65 from general and clinical populations, compared to face-to-face mindfulness, digital apps, active controls, or no treatment. The review will search eight databases, include randomized controlled trials, and use meta-analysis with subgroup analyses. Expected results will inform clinical guidelines and health policy.
JMIR research protocols
October 23, 2024
Gede Rasben Dantes, Nice Maylani Asril, Andrian Liem et al.
6 citations
A brief mindfulness-based mobile app (BM-MA) is being tested for feasibility and preliminary effects among 60 Indonesian senior high school teachers experiencing anxiety and stress. The three-week program involves 10-20 minutes of daily mindfulness practice. Outcomes measured include anxiety, stress, life satisfaction, self-efficacy, trait mindfulness, self-compassion, and physical and social dysfunction, assessed at baseline, postintervention, and one-month follow-up. The protocol describes a randomized controlled trial with an intervention group and a wait-list control group. Results are expected in December 2024.
JMIR research protocols
July 15, 2024
Takumu Kurosawa, Koichiro Adachi, Ryu Takizawa
6 citations
A randomized controlled trial protocol will test whether brief guided mindfulness meditation or self-compassion meditation delivered by a smartphone app improves mental health and work performance among Japanese employees working more than 20 hours per week, aged 18 to 54, not on leave, and without a current mental disorder diagnosis. The trial will enroll 200 participants, assigning them to a self-compassion meditation course, a mindfulness meditation course, or a waitlist group. Daily guided sessions lasting 6 to 12 minutes over 4 weeks are planned. Primary outcomes are psychological distress and job performance; secondary outcomes include well-being, work engagement, and creativity. Recruitment began December 2022, and as of September 2023, 375 participants have been enrolled; intervention and data collection completed in October 2023.
JMIR research protocols
February 12, 2024
Ariel Siritorn Orasud, Mai Uchiyama, Ian Pagano et al.
3 citations
Anxiety and cancer-related neuropathy are common long-term effects of cancer treatment. Mindfulness meditation delivered through a mobile app may help manage these symptoms, especially for survivors with physical or geographic limitations. This paper describes an ongoing randomized waitlist-controlled trial evaluating the Mindfulness Coach app. Cancer survivors who completed primary treatment and experienced anxiety or neuropathy (200 per condition) were recruited. Data are collected at baseline, 8 weeks, and 16 weeks. The trial compares treatment and waitlist groups separately for each condition, assessing anxiety, neuropathy, pain, fatigue, trauma, sleep, and app satisfaction. Results are expected in early 2024. The approach aims to make mindfulness meditation accessible to more survivors.
JMIR research protocols
April 17, 2024
Akash Goel, Bhavya Kapoor, Hillary Chan et al.
2 citations
Chronic pain affects about 8 million Canadians (20%) and costs the healthcare system over US $60 billion yearly. This paper describes the planned protocol for a pilot randomized controlled trial testing three treatments: intravenous ketamine alone, cognitive behavioral therapy with mindfulness meditation (CBT/MM), or a combination of both. The primary goal is to assess feasibility—recruitment, consent, withdrawal, adherence, missing data, and adverse events—in 30 participants over 20 weeks. Secondary outcomes include changes in pain intensity and pain interference at week 20. Recruitment had not started as of November 2023; the study is expected to complete by December 2025. Results will inform a larger trial.
JMIR research protocols
April 28, 2023
Chad Stecher, Sara Cloonan, Sebastian Linnemayr et al.
2 citations
Long-term elevated stress contributes to mental and physical health problems. Mindfulness meditation mobile apps offer a promising self-management tool, but poor adherence limits their effectiveness. This planned 16-week randomized controlled trial will test whether combining behavioral economics incentives (self-monitoring messages and financial rewards) with an anchoring strategy—pairing meditation with an existing daily routine—can establish and maintain a habit of at least 10 minutes of daily meditation. The study will compare five groups, varying the type of self-monitoring and whether financial incentives are tied to any-time meditation or meditation near the anchor time. Adherence will be measured weekly, and secondary outcomes include stress, anxiety, PTSD, sleep, and habit strength. The research aims to identify a scalable intervention for stress management.
JMIR research protocols
June 18, 2024
Mohammad Hooshmand Zaferanieh, Lu Shi, Meenu Jindal et al.
1 citation
A protocol describes a planned trial testing whether mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) delivered via the web can reduce depression symptoms and psychiatric distress. The study will randomly assign 128 participants to either an 8-week web-based MBCT group plus treatment as usual or an 8-week waitlist control group. Primary outcomes are depression symptoms and psychiatric distress; secondary outcomes include perceived stress and mindfulness facets. Feasibility will be measured by adherence, retention, attendance, and engagement. As of November 2023, 30 of 224 screened participants were enrolled. Results are expected by August 2024.
JMIR research protocols
April 23, 2026
Kennedi Childs, Carter Minnick, Geraldine Martorella et al.
Chronic musculoskeletal pain often becomes entangled with a person's sense of self, making treatment difficult. Mindfulness-based interventions may help by promoting self-transcendence, a potential mechanism for lasting pain relief. This protocol describes a three-arm randomized controlled trial with 173 adults who have chronic musculoskeletal pain. Participants will receive either traditional mindful breathing instruction, mindful breathing plus direct pointing instruction, or be placed on a waitlist. Self-transcendence will be measured using self-reports, EEG theta activity, and fNIRS default mode network activity. Pain intensity and functional interference will be tracked from baseline through a three-month follow-up. Data collection runs from October 2024 to May 2027; no results are yet available.
JMIR research protocols
July 29, 2025
Nicholas Bowles, Alexander Burger, Jonathan N Davies et al.
A proposed randomized controlled trial will test whether longer daily mindfulness meditation sessions produce greater improvements in well-being. Healthy adults aged 18–65 will be assigned to 4-week online courses with 10, 20, or 30 minutes of daily practice, or a 4-minute control condition. The primary outcome is psychological well-being, measured at baseline, midintervention, postintervention, and one-month follow-up. The trial aims to enroll at least 688 participants; as of end of 2024, 70 eligible participants were enrolled. Results are expected by March 2026.
JMIR research protocols
May 26, 2025
Elena Nixon, Shireen Patel, Priya Patel et al.
A randomized controlled trial will compare Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Life (MBCT-L) with a routinely offered Stress Reduction Psychoeducation (SRP) program for healthcare and other public sector staff in the United Kingdom. The trial aims to determine whether MBCT-L is more effective than SRP in reducing perceived stress and improving mental health and work-related outcomes. A total of 260 participants were recruited into 26 groups across NHS trusts, with outcomes measured at 6, 12, and 20 weeks. The primary outcome is change in perceived stress from baseline to 20 weeks. A qualitative substudy with 30 participants will explore perceived well-being changes and barriers to uptake. Data analysis is underway.
JMIR research protocols
April 24, 2025
Probation officers and other professionals working with youth in the legal system face high chronic workplace stress, which can lead to anxiety, depression, and burnout. Emotion dysregulation may underlie these problems and can be improved with mindfulness meditation. This paper describes the protocol for a hybrid type 2 effectiveness-implementation pilot randomized controlled trial of Bodhi AIM+, a meditation app adapted for these professionals. Fifty participants will be randomly assigned to use the meditation app or an active control app for 30 days. The primary outcome is app adherence measured by objective analytics. Mental health outcomes, emotion regulation via ecological momentary assessment, and qualitative interviews will be collected. Enrollment began in December 2024, with results expected in 2026.