Mindfulness Training for First Responders

The present study evaluates the efficacy of Mindfulness-Based Attention Training on measures targeting cognitive abilities and emotional well-being in first responders.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Burnout
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Mindfulness-Based Attention Training (MBAT)

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 87
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • Florida
    • Coral Gables, Florida, United States, 33146
      • University of Miami

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

1. Individuals who are between 18 and 75 years of age
2. Individuals who are fluent English speakers
3. Individuals who are able to adequately and independently use electronic devices, such as a laptop, computer, or tablet, and have Internet connection
4. Individuals who are willing and able to consent to participate in the study
5. Participants in all phases of the study must be individuals who are affiliated with the Los Angeles County Fire Department peer support group.

Exclusion Criteria:

1. Individuals with an active and untreated mental health issue and/or hospitalization for psychological/mental health issues within the past month

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Treatment
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Sequential Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Mindfulness Training Group A; Participants in this group will receive mindfulness training in up to 8 weeks.	Behavioral: Mindfulness-Based Attention Training (MBAT); MBAT is an evidence-based 8-hour mindfulness program that comprises 4 central topics and associated practices. The concentration topic introduces participants to mindfulness "basics," including discussion of focused attention and mind wandering. The body awareness theme involves the cultivation of greater self-awareness, and the development of equanimity. The open monitoring theme emphasizes awareness of and receptivity to changing experiences and moments of uncertainty. The theme of connection addresses leadership and group cohesion, and the cultivation of kindness and connection with others. The course content and materials in the present study will entail the foundational MBAT curriculum and other related content delivered virtually over Zoom but will consist of 8, 1-hour sessions delivered across 8 consecutive weeks.
Active Comparator: Wait-list condition Group B; Participants in this group will be on a waiting list to receive the identical intervention as the experimental group at a later time. Total participation in the mindfulness training will be 8 weeks	Behavioral: Mindfulness-Based Attention Training (MBAT); MBAT is an evidence-based 8-hour mindfulness program that comprises 4 central topics and associated practices. The concentration topic introduces participants to mindfulness "basics," including discussion of focused attention and mind wandering. The body awareness theme involves the cultivation of greater self-awareness, and the development of equanimity. The open monitoring theme emphasizes awareness of and receptivity to changing experiences and moments of uncertainty. The theme of connection addresses leadership and group cohesion, and the cultivation of kindness and connection with others. The course content and materials in the present study will entail the foundational MBAT curriculum and other related content delivered virtually over Zoom but will consist of 8, 1-hour sessions delivered across 8 consecutive weeks.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Change in resilience	Resilience is assessed via the 6-item Brief Resilience Scale (BRS). The scores range from 6 to 30, with a higher score indicating a higher level of resilience.	Baseline to week 11
Change in sustained attention	The Sustained Attention to Response Task (SART) is used to assess attentional performance and mind wandering (i.e., off-task thinking which is typically self-generated and compromises the performance of the task at hand). The task uses a continuous performance paradigm involving button presses to frequently presented nontargets (numbers 0, 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9) but requires the participants to withhold their motor response to the infrequent target (number 3). Withholding responses only to infrequent targets encourages a pre-potent response and mind wandering. Real-time subjective experience of mind wandering during SART is assessed through experience-sampling probes randomly presented throughout the task.	Baseline to week 11

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Change in positive affect	Positive Affect is assessed with the 5-item positive sub-scale from Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS). PANAS Positive has a range of scores from 5 to 25, with a higher score indicating a higher positive mood.	Baseline to week 11
Change in negative affect	Negative Affect is assessed with the 5-item negative sub-scale from Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS-10). PANAS Negative has a range of scores from 5 to 25, with a higher score indicating a higher negative mood.	Baseline to week 11
Change in perceived stress	Perceived stress is assessed with the 4-item Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-4). PSS-4 has a range of scores from 0 to 16, with a higher score indicating a higher level of perceived stress.	Baseline to week 11
Change in burnout	Burnout is assessed with the 12-item Burnout Assessment Tool (BAT-12). BAT-12 has a range of score from 1 to 5, with a higher score indicated a higher level of burnout.	Baseline to week 11
Change in decentering	Decentering is assessed via the 11-item decentering sub-scale of the experience questionnaire (EQ-D). The decentering score ranges from 1 to 55, with a higher score indicating a higher level of decentering.	Baseline to week 11

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University of Miami
• Collaborators: Unlikely Collaborators Inc.
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Amishi Jha, PhD, University of Miami

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): July 22, 2025
• Primary Completion (Actual): April 10, 2026
• Study Completion (Actual): April 10, 2026

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: August 30, 2024
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: August 30, 2024
• First Posted (Actual): September 3, 2024

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): May 15, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: May 13, 2026
• Last Verified: May 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Behavioral Symptoms; Stress, Psychological; Behavior; Burnout, Psychological
• Other Study ID Numbers: 20240877

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No
• product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.: No