Al-Refae Mohamed, Al-Refae Amr, Munroe Melanie, Sardella Nicole A, Ferrari Michel
The Wisdom and Identity Lab, Department of Applied Psychology and Human Development, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Front Psychol. 2021 Mar 22;12:648087. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.648087. eCollection 2021.
Many individuals and families are currently experiencing a high level of COVID-19-related stress and are struggling to find helpful coping mechanisms. Mindfulness-based interventions are becoming an increasingly popular treatment for individuals experiencing depression and chronic levels of stress. The app (Serene) draws from scholarly evidence on the efficacy of mindfulness meditations and builds on the pre-existing apps by incorporating techniques that are used in some therapies such as cognitive behavioral therapy and mindfulness-based cognitive therapy. Participants were randomly assigned to a 4-week mindfulness and self-compassion-based cognitive smartphone intervention (Serene) or a wait-list control group. They were instructed to engage in self-compassion and mindfulness practices and a cognitive restructuring task. They also completed measures that evaluated their levels of depression, stress, anxiety, self-compassion, wisdom, psychological well-being, and subjective well-being. The intervention group was also instructed to track their weekly engagement with the app. Standardized effect sizes for between-group differences were calculated using Cohen's for complete case analyses. Complete case analyses from baseline to the end of this randomized controlled trial demonstrated significant moderate between-group differences for depressive symptoms ( = -0.43) and decisiveness ( = 0.34). Moderate between-group differences were also found for self-compassion ( = 0.6) such that significant improvements in self-kindness, common humanity, mindfulness and decreases in self-judgement, isolation, and overidentification were observed. A small between-group difference was found for emotional regulation ( = 0.28). Moreover, a significant moderate within-group decrease in stress ( = -0.52) and anxiety symptoms ( = -0.47) was also observed in the intervention group. Serene is an effective intervention that promotes increased levels of self-compassion and emotional regulation. Engaging with Serene may help reduce depressive symptoms through mindfulness, self-compassion, and cognitive restructuring which help reduce overidentification with one's negative emotions. As individuals rebalance their thinking through cognitive restructuring, they can identify the varying stressors in their life, develop action plans and engage in adaptive coping strategies to address them. Serene may promote greater self-understanding which may provide one with a more balanced perspective on their current upsetting situations to positively transform their challenges during the pandemic.
许多个人和家庭目前正经历着与新冠疫情相关的高度压力，并且正在努力寻找有效的应对机制。基于正念的干预措施正日益成为治疗抑郁症患者和长期压力人群的热门方法。这款应用程序（Serene）借鉴了关于正念冥想功效的学术证据，并在现有应用程序的基础上，融入了认知行为疗法和基于正念的认知疗法等一些疗法中使用的技巧。参与者被随机分配到一个基于正念和自我同情的为期4周的认知智能手机干预组（Serene）或一个等待名单对照组。他们被要求进行自我同情和正念练习以及一项认知重构任务。他们还完成了评估其抑郁、压力、焦虑、自我同情、智慧、心理健康和主观幸福感水平的测评。干预组还被要求记录他们每周使用该应用程序的情况。使用科恩系数（Cohen's ）对完整病例分析计算组间差异的标准化效应量。从基线到这项随机对照试验结束的完整病例分析表明，抑郁症状（ = -0.43）和决断力（ = 0.34）在组间存在显著的中度差异。自我同情方面也发现了中度组间差异（ = 0.6），即自我友善、共通人性、正念有显著改善，自我评判、孤立和过度认同有所减少。情绪调节方面发现了较小的组间差异（ = 0.28）。此外，干预组还观察到组内压力（ = -0.52）和焦虑症状（ = -0.47）有显著的中度下降。Serene是一种有效的干预措施，可促进自我同情和情绪调节水平的提高。使用Serene可能有助于通过正念、自我同情和认知重构来减轻抑郁症状，这有助于减少对自身负面情绪的过度认同。当个体通过认知重构重新平衡思维时，他们可以识别生活中不同的压力源，制定行动计划并采用适应性应对策略来应对这些压力源。Serene可能会促进更强的自我理解，这可能会为个体提供一个对当前令人苦恼的情况更平衡的视角，从而在疫情期间积极应对挑战。
