Tracking Mood and Language Change Across a Phone-based Mindfulness Intervention

The objective of this study is to administer a brief, phone(voice)-based training program in mindfulness (or control task of active listening to narrated articles) to older adults who receive primary care services at NM. Older adults represent a population that is at risk for depression and anxiety, especially during the current COVID-19 pandemic and the social isolation it entails. Many older adults also possess relatively low access to application-based mindfulness training opportunities. The monitoring aims are: 1. To determine whether the experimental intervention (mindfulness training) performs better than a control task (active listening) in improving mood assessed using the Profile of Mood States (POMS) and/or anxiety assessed using the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI). 2. To determine whether the experimental and/or control intervention is associated with quantified changes in language use (e.g., frequency of negative word use), which may or may not also be associated with changes in mood and anxiety.