Evaluating Social Perception Dynamics

February 10, 2026 updated by: Yale University

Evaluating the Impact of Community-Based Mindfulness and Musical Programs on Psychiatric Measures, Social Perception Tasks 2d.

Mental health vulnerability due to stress is increased in People of African Descent (PADs) in America due to disproportionate effects of racism, poverty, education, and criminal justice sentencing. Various meditation and mindfulness approaches have provided evidence of measured reductions in multiple negative dimensions of stress. However, the majority of these studies do not have an adequate representation of PADs or other marginalized groups and are not designed to be culturally relevant or community based. Music has been shown to alleviate multiple symptoms of stress and has been shown to be a preferred and effective support for meditation and mindfulness. However, its role in stress management in PADs engaged in meditation or mindfulness is seldom studied. This study aims to evaluate the effects of a virtual, community-based music mindfulness program on stress management in PAD community members with anxiety and depression during COVID19.

Component 2d. Social Perception Tasks: Participants may be asked to take part in social perception tasks in which they will be asked to indicate their social perception and connection felt with various partners.

Study Overview

Status

Enrolling by invitation

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

The investigators also propose a study to investigate the effects of communal drumming in reducing anxiety and increasing connectedness within drum circle community. Investigators hypothesize that these intervention will lead to reductions in scores on stress scales and will provide preliminary data for studies evaluating these types of community programs as an adjunct to the standard of care.

Paradigms will be designed such that participants experience speed-dating like interactions with individuals in which they are not allowed to verbally communicate. After silently interacting with each partner, subjects will be prompted to answer survey questions about their perceptions of their partner and their interaction. This task will take place in a variety of settings.

This task was developed to quantify group dynamics. Participants that are enrolled and consented in a study are given a participant ID number. Each participant sits 2 feet across from another participant. They are paired with that participant for 30 seconds. They are instructed that they can look freely across at their own will. After 30 seconds they are asked to answer the following questions on a Likert scale 1-7 about the interaction with the other participant:

What is your partner's ID? How connected do you feel to this partner? (very unconnected-very connected) How approachable do you think this person is? (very unapproachable-very approachable) How likely is this person to be in your socioeconomic class? (very unlikely-very likely) How likely is this person to share your political views? (very unlikely-very likely) How willing are you to discuss a controversial subject with this partner? (very unwilling - very willing) How willing are you to compromise to solve a complex problem with this partner? (very unwilling - very willing)

Following this they are paired with another participant in the group and complete the same questions. This continues until they have been matched with all other participants.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

300

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

    • Connecticut
      • New Haven, Connecticut, United States, 06515
        • BLOOM
      • New Haven, Connecticut, United States, 06520
        • Musical Intervention Studios

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Child
  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • ages 16 and older

Exclusion Criteria:

  • ages 15 and younger

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Supportive Care
  • Allocation: N/A
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Component 2d. Social Perception Tasks
Participants will take part in social perception tasks in speed-dating like interactions with individuals in which they are not allowed to verbally communicate. After silently interacting with each partner, subjects will be prompted to answer survey questions about their perceptions of their partner and their interaction. This task will take place in a variety of settings.
social perception tasks

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Mean score individual subjective rating of social connection during session
Time Frame: baseline on day of study and 5 minutes after intervention
Rating of subjective connectedness will be assessed using a Likert scale with total score range from 1-5, with higher scores indicating more connectedness.
baseline on day of study and 5 minutes after intervention

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Mean score group subjective rating of social connection post session
Time Frame: baseline on day of study and 5 minutes after intervention
Rating of subjective connectedness will be assessed using a Likert scale with total score range from 1-5, with higher scores indicating more connectedness.
baseline on day of study and 5 minutes after intervention

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: AZA Allsop, MD, PhD, Yale University

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

August 1, 2024

Primary Completion (Estimated)

March 1, 2026

Study Completion (Estimated)

March 1, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

July 10, 2024

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

July 19, 2024

First Posted (Actual)

July 22, 2024

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

February 13, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

February 10, 2026

Last Verified

February 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

YES

IPD Plan Description

De-identified, aggregate data will be shared through pre-prints, publications, and community town hall meetings.

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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