A Feasibility Study of An Online Mindful Well-being Course.

INTERVENTION: Participants will consent to be enrolled in an online course that fosters the cultivation of compassion through mindfulness. Participants will be randomly allocated to either the compassion‐based mindfulness high interactivity (CBM‐H) course or the compassion‐based mindfulness course low interactivity (CBM‐L). Both courses are modulated into six themes, all surrounding differing components of compassion based interventions (Including; self‐kindness, mindfulness, interconnection, self‐criticism and dealing with difficult emotions). Each module is estimated to take approximately 2‐3 hours per week to complete. Each Module contains a brief overview of the weekly theme, introductions the concept, an activity of surrounding the concept, a mindfulness practice (starting at 10 minutes in module one progressing to 20‐25 minutes in module six), reading material (the underlying scientific basis of the theme) and a quiz to check understanding. Participants will be asked to reflect on their practices weekly via. diary entry's (displayed as an online personal blog). Weekly announcements of tips suggesting how to manage to incorporate the weekly compassion based theme into daily activities will be posted to the announcements. Weekly emails introducing the theme, topic and activities of the week will be sent to participants to encourage adherence. Engagement data from the online platform of which the course is hosted will be assessed at the end of the course to assess the levels of engagement, points of drop‐out and levels of activity. The metrics consist of, activity reports, logs, engagement analytics, a breakdown of downloads and streaming use and log‐in reports. Adherence to the intervention will be monitored as the course is structured in modules, competency tracking of each module is enabled, participants will have to complete a quiz at the end of the module to progress. Participants who do not complete the course in the 6‐week duration will be asked to complete a questionnaire surrounding their reason for non‐completion. Participants who choose to withdraw from the study will be contacted by the chief investigator and questioned surrounding the reason for withdrawing and if necessary referred to other services. The content in both groups is 100% identical. The only differences in the low and high interactivity group are the online structure of activities. Whereby the activities in the high interactivity group are structured around encouraging collaboration, interactivity and communication between participants. These activity's consist of peer‐graded assessments, collaborative brainstorms, response and reply to forums, the creation of glossary, a group blog and reflective forums that are open. The low interactivity groups course is structured as an individually based course. Which will not have the levels of interaction with other students. CONDITION: Anxiety Depression General psychological well‐being Mindfulness Self‐Compassion Stress INCLUSION CRITERIA: Participants must be a current student of Murdoch University and have a computer with internet access. PRIMARY OUTCOME: The primary objective of this study is to evaluate whether the compassion based mindfulness course effectively increases levels of self‐compassion, mindfulness, and psychological well‐being, as well as decreasing levels of depression, anxiety and stress. To measure mindfulness, The Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ) will be administered at three‐time points. The questionnaire assesses individual differences in mindfulness five factors (observing, describing, awareness, non‐judging and non‐reactivity). To assess a change in participant self‐compassion is achieved. The Self‐Compassion Scale (SCS) will be administered at three time points. The SCS measures how individuals act and treat themselves in times of stress. This is theorised variate with levels of individual self‐compassion. To assess a change in participants psychological well‐being the Mental Health Continuum‐Short Form (MHC‐SF) will be administered at three time points. The MHC‐SF measures factors related to positive mental health being emotional, social and psychological well‐being. A total score will be used for this study as it is considered an indicator of overall psychological well‐being. SECONDARY OUTCOME: Primary Outcome. To assess a change in participants levels of depression, anxiety and stress will be evaluated using the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale 21 (DASS‐21). The DASS‐21 ask participants to rate the severity of symptoms related to the three constructs specifically. For this study as each factor is considered an outcome. The sub‐scores of the DASS‐21 will be used to calculate specific outcomes related to the three factors. The secondary objective of this study is to determine whether a highly interactive/collaborative online course would have higher program engagement, adherence and completion. To assess this outcome composite measures are warranted, participant self‐report measures will be used. These scales are embedded in a single matrix format. Asking the participants at the end of the week's module to rate the frequency of which they attempted the activities in the course (1–not at all to 5–five or more times this week). The frequency of which they practiced with the meditations in the past week (1–not at all to 5–five or more times this week). The frequently they had accessed course materials and information (1–never to 5–Daily) and how beneficial believed the weekly content of the course had been for them (1–not at all to 5–very beneficial). These measures will be combined to assess the overall engagement with the weekly content, practice and participation on a weekly basis. The secondary objective of this study is to determine whether a highly interactive/collaborative online course would have higher program engagement, adherence and completion. To assess this outcome, composite measures are warranted. The online analytics embedded in the platform the course is hosted will be used. Four primary metrics available from the online platform will be tracked. Activity reports (total usage per course activity or resource), participation logs (select activity, period, actions), engagement analytics (group, time spent of activity, date, activity) and completion rates (percentage of students completing each final component of the module). Each of which allows for individual and by‐group tracking. By combining and assessing the relationships between these metrics, we are able to assess the levels of engagement in individual activities. As well as areas of attrition in the course.