%0 Journal Article
%@ 2368-7959
%I JMIR Publications
%V 6
%N 1
%P e10844
%T Effects of a Mindfulness Meditation App on Subjective Well-Being: Active Randomized Controlled Trial and Experience Sampling Study
%A Walsh,Kathleen Marie
%A Saab,Bechara J
%A Farb,Norman AS
%+ Department of Psychological Clinical Science, University of Toronto Scarborough, SY-146 Science Research Building, 1265 Military Trail, Toronto, ON, M1C 1A4, Canada, 1 647 876 1327, k.walsh@mail.utoronto.ca
%K mindfulness
%K attention
%K mobile health
%K interoception
%K mood
%K stress, psychological
%D 2019
%7 08.01.2019
%9 Original Paper
%J JMIR Ment Health
%G English
%X Background: Mindfulness training (MT) includes a variety of contemplative practices aimed at promoting intentional awareness of experience, coupled with attitudes of nonjudgment and curiosity. Following the success of 8-week, manualized group interventions, MT has been implemented in a variety of modalities, including smartphone apps that seek to replicate the success of group interventions. However, although smartphone apps are scalable and accessible to a wider swath of population, their benefits remain largely untested. Objective: This study aimed to investigate a newly developed MT app called Wildflowers, which was codeveloped with the laboratory for use in mindfulness research. It was hypothesized that 3 weeks of MT through this app would improve subjective well-being, attentional control, and interoceptive integration, albeit with weaker effects than those published in the 8 week, manualized group intervention literature. Methods: Undergraduate students completed 3 weeks of MT with Wildflowers (n=45) or 3 weeks of cognitive training with a game called 2048 (n=41). State training effects were assessed through pre- and postsession ratings of current mood, stress level, and heart rate. Trait training effects were assessed through pre- and postintervention questionnaires canvassing subjective well-being and behavioral task measures of attentional control and interoceptive integration. State and trait training data were analyzed in a multilevel model using emergent latent factors (acceptance, awareness, and openness) to summarize the trait questionnaire battery. Results: Analyses revealed both state and trait effects specific to MT; participants engaging in MT demonstrated improved mood (r=.14) and a reduction of stress (r=−.13) immediately after each training session compared with before the training session and decreased postsession stress over 3 weeks (r=−.08). In addition, MT relative to cognitive training resulted in greater improvements in attentional control (r=−.24). Interestingly, both groups demonstrated increased subjective ratings of awareness (r=.28) and acceptance (r=.23) from pre- to postintervention, with greater changes in acceptance for the MT group trending (r=.21). Conclusions: MT, using a smartphone app, may provide immediate effects on mood and stress while also providing long-term benefits for attentional control. Although further investigation is warranted, there is evidence that with continued usage, MT via a smartphone app may provide long-term benefits in changing how one relates to their inner and outer experiences. Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT03783793; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03783793 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/75EF2ehst) 
%M 30622094
%R 10.2196/10844
%U https://mental.jmir.org/2019/1/e10844/
%U https://doi.org/10.2196/10844
%U http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30622094