Supported Mindful Learning (SMiLe)
We are collaborating with Dr. Rebecca Silton in the Loyola WELL lab, Dr. Jenna Duffecy from UIC, and the science team at Headspace, to run an 8-week intervention for depressed college students. The intervention entails using Headspace, an online/mobile application delivering brief, guided, themed mindfulness activities, and connecting with a small peer group online (thorough a hidden, private Facebook group) to give and receive encouragement and support. We will examine the effects of the intervention on various outcomes, as well as moderation and mediation relationships among them:
- Distress: depression, anxiety, distress, positive and negative affect, emodiversity
- Positive well-being: savoring, happiness, spirituality
- Skills and strategies: mindfulness, rumination, self-regulatory self-efficacy
- Relational skills and styles: social connectedness, prosocial tendencies, empathy, compassion and self-compassion
- Participants’ goals, motivations, engagement, and perceived supportive accountability via the online peer groups