Physiology of Liberation

Conditions

• Psychophysiological Reactivity and Recovery

Eligibility Criteria

Sex

ALL

Age

18 Years - N/A

Healthy Volunteers

Accepted

Interventions

• Brief Standardized Mindfulness/Attention Instruction — BEHAVIORAL
  At one or more assigned study measurement sessions, participants receive a brief, standardized, non-clinical instruction lasting approximately 1 to 10 minutes. The instruction directs attention to breathing or another clear body sensation, briefly acknowledges thoughts, emotions, wanting, resisting, or urges, and returns attention to the selected sensation. The number, duration, and schedule of sessions are specified before each study wave begins and applied consistently within that wave; comparison sessions are time-matched. Participants may open their eyes, change position, or stop at any time.

Study Details

This academic study examines how everyday experiences are related to short-term physiological reactivity and recovery and whether one or more brief standardized mindfulness/attention-instruction sessions change these patterns. Adults living in the United States who can read and understand the English study materials participate for up to 12 weeks and complete brief smartphone surveys several times a day during waking hours. Surveys include current experiences and recent alcohol and nicotine use; these reports are analyzed as contextual variables and are not automatic exclusion criteria. Some participants also use assigned non-invasive wearable sensors or blood-pressure monitors during prespecified measurement windows. Device output is used only for research measurement, not diagnosis, treatment, real-time medical decision-making, or patient management. In study waves with a randomized comparison, participants are randomized after consent to one or more brief mindfulness/attention-instruction sessions or time-matched no-instruction comparison sessions. Session duration, schedule, and allocation probabilities are specified before each study wave begins and applied consistently within that wave.

Key Dates

First listed

Aug 21, 2026

Start date

Sep 30, 2026

Status verified

Aug 2026

Primary completion

Aug 31, 2027

Completion

Sep 30, 2028

Study Design

Enrollment

36 participants (estimated)

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Intervention model

CROSSOVER

Primary purpose

BASIC_SCIENCE

Arms

• Experimental: Fixed Schedule - Instruction Throughout
  Participants receive one or more brief standardized mindfulness/attention-instruction sessions at assigned measurement sessions and complete the same measurement schedule as the comparison arm. Each session lasts approximately 1 to 10 minutes. The number, duration, and schedule of sessions are specified before each study wave begins and applied consistently within that wave.
• No Intervention: Fixed Schedule - No Instruction
  Participants sit quietly in a comfortable position as they normally would during one or more time-matched no-instruction comparison sessions. No particular attention or meditation method is requested. Each session lasts approximately 1 to 10 minutes. The number, duration, and schedule of sessions are specified before each study wave begins and applied consistently within that wave; participants complete the same measurement schedule as the experimental arm.
• Experimental: Within-Person Randomized Instruction
  Brief standardized mindfulness/attention instructions are delivered on randomly assigned day-blocks and withheld on the remaining day-blocks, with the sequence randomized within each participant and balanced across days of the week. All ecological momentary assessment and ambulatory physiological monitoring procedures are identical on instructed and non-instructed day-blocks. Each instruction session lasts approximately 1 to 10 minutes. Participation in any individual instruction is voluntary; whether the participant performed it is recorded.

Primary Outcome Measure

Time to 50% Return to Pre-Event Baseline Skin Conductance Level [ Time Frame: Repeatedly during each enrollment period of up to 12 weeks ]

Central Contacts

• Jiayin Sun, PhD
  617-353-9640
  [email protected]

Locations (1)

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