A Single-Session Intervention Fostering Emotional Nonreactivity

Launched by NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY · Jun 13, 2025

Keywords

ClinConnect Summary

This clinical trial is testing a new, one-time online program called "Project WAVE" that aims to help young adults (ages 18 to 29) better manage difficult emotions. The program teaches mindfulness skills, which means learning how to notice and understand your feelings without immediately reacting to them. Participants will be compared to a group doing a different online activity to see if Project WAVE is more helpful in improving emotional control.

To join the study, you need to be between 18 and 29 years old, comfortable reading and writing in English, have internet access, and live in the United States or U.S. territories. You should also feel that you sometimes struggle with handling your emotions without reacting strongly, based on a few simple questions. During the study, participants will complete surveys and activities online, and they must be willing to provide honest and thoughtful answers. This study is not yet recruiting participants but aims to find out if this single-session program can make a positive difference in how young adults cope with distressing emotions.

Gender

ALL

Eligibility criteria

• • Between the ages of 18 and 29, inclusive
• • Self-report comfort in reading and writing in English
• • Have access to the Internet through computer, laptop, smartphone, etc.
• • Live in the United States or U.S. territories, per IP address
• • Provide an endorsement of either "disagree" or "strongly disagree" on at least one of the following three items adapted from the Nonreactivity subscale of the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire: "I was aware of my feelings and emotions without having to react to them"; "I watched my feelings without getting lost in them"; "When I had distressing emotions, I 'stepped back' and was aware of the emotion without getting taken over by it"
• • Commit to providing thoughtful answers to the questions asked
• • Pass the attention check / bot detection question, "Are you taller than 10 feet?" ("yes," "no," or "unsure") in the initial screener survey
• Exclusion Criteria:
• • Fail to meet the above-listed inclusion criteria
• • Exit the study prior to condition randomization
• • Fail to pass data integrity measures