Meditation Apps for Stress Management in Black Women

This study is a two‐arm, randomized, fully remote pilot study comparing Exhale™, aculturally adapted meditation application designed for Black women, with Levelhead, ageneral science‐based mindfulness application.Approximately 40 Black women ages 35‐64 who report moderate to high perceived stress willbe enrolled. After eligibility screening, informed consent, and completion of baselinequestionnaires through REDCap, participants will be randomized in a 1:1 ratio to Exhale™or Levelhead using the REDCap randomization module.Participants in both groups will be asked to complete at least one app‐based meditationor mindfulness session per day, lasting approximately 5 minutes or longer, at least 5days per week for 4 weeks. Participants may complete additional or longer sessions butwill not be required to make up missed sessions. Daily Remind messages will askparticipants whether they completed a session and the approximate number of minutespracticed. Weekly check‐ins will provide study reminders and opportunities to requesttechnical assistance.Remote questionnaires will be administered at baseline and at the end of Week 4. Primaryoutcomes will assess feasibility and acceptability through recruitment, retention,adherence, assessment completion, satisfaction, and usability. Secondary outcomes willexamine preliminary changes in perceived stress, race‐based stress, sleep, depression,and anxiety. Cultural relevance and brief open‐ended participant feedback will also becollected. Some participants may be invited to complete an optional brief remote exitinterview.