Tools for Wellbeing COVID-19 National Study of Undergraduate Students

Purpose

The study evaluates the effectiveness of yoga practices on reducing stress, negative emotion, anxiety, and depression and on increasing positive emotion, wellbeing and resilience. The study uses randomized wait-list control. All U.S. undergraduate students in 4-year universities and colleges age 18 or older are eligible to participate.

Conditions

  • Stress
  • Anxiety
  • Depression
  • Resilience
  • Wellbeing
  • Mood

Eligibility

Eligible Ages
Over 18 Years
Eligible Genders
All
Accepts Healthy Volunteers
Yes

Inclusion Criteria

  • 18 or older - Enrolled in 4-year universities/colleges in 2020 - Not graduate in May 2020

Exclusion Criteria

  • Younger than 18 - Not enrolled in 4-year universities/colleges in 2020 - Graduate in May 2020

Study Design

Phase
N/A
Study Type
Interventional
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention Model
Crossover Assignment
Intervention Model Description
Randomized waitlist control cross over
Primary Purpose
Supportive Care
Masking
None (Open Label)

Arm Groups

ArmDescriptionAssigned Intervention
Experimental
Group 1 - Yoga Group 		Learn online yoga practices and practice daily for 12-weeks
  • Other: Yoga
    Yoga Namaskar and Nadi Shuddhi
Other
Group 2 - Control Group 		waist-list control for 4-week, cross-over to yoga practice for 8-week
  • Other: Yoga
    Yoga Namaskar and Nadi Shuddhi

Recruiting Locations

Rutgers University
New Brunswick, New Jersey 08901
Contact:
Tracy F Chang, Ph.D.

More Details

NCT ID
NCT04414371
Status
Unknown status
Sponsor
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey

Study Contact

Tracy F Chang, Ph.D.
2052666477
tracy.chang@rutgers.edu

Detailed Description

The purpose of this project is to widely disseminate a system of yoga tools to university students, faculty, and staff internationally to buffer the psychological impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. A recent study finds that stress, anxiety, and depression are the major psychological responses to COVID-19 during the early outbreaks in China (Wang et al., 2020). Globally, universities have closed campuses and moved learning, teaching, and working online with a very short notice. CDC suggests that keeping physically active and meditation are among the key activities to maintain a strong immune system and mental health during quarantine. Studies have documented physical and mental benefits of yoga practices (Balasubramaniam, Telles, & Doraiswamy, 2013; Brems, 2015; Brunner, Abramovitch, & Etherton, 2017; Büssing, Michalsen, Telles, Sherman, & Khalsa, 2012) This project introduces a system of yoga tools to buffer the psychological impact of COVID-19. This system of yoga tools is designed by Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev, a yogi, mystic, author, and founder of the Isha Foundation. The Isha foundation is a volunteer-based international non-profit organization, offering yoga and meditation programs for human wellbeing and global harmony. In partnership with the Isha Foundation and Harvard University Medical School, the study will document the short-term and long-term effects of these yogic practices on stress, mood, wellbeing, resilience, and academic engagement for students and work engagement for faculty and staff during this challenging time.