Tools for Wellbeing COVID-19 National Study of Undergraduate Students
Tools for Wellbeing COVID-19 National Study of Undergraduate Students
The study evaluates the effectiveness of yoga practices on reducing stress, negative emotion, anxiety, and depression and on increasing positive emotion, wellbeing and resilience. The study uses randomized wait-list control. All U.S. undergraduate students in 4-year universities and colleges age 18 or older are eligible to participate.
The purpose of this project is to widely disseminate a system of yoga tools to university students, faculty, and staff internationally to buffer the psychological impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. A recent study finds that stress, anxiety, and depression are the major psychological responses to COVID-19 during the early outbreaks in China (Wang et al., 2020). Globally, universities have closed campuses and moved learning, teaching, and working online with a very short notice. CDC suggests that keeping physically active and meditation are among the key activities to maintain a strong immune system and mental health during quarantine. Studies have documented physical and mental benefits of yoga practices (Balasubramaniam, Telles, & Doraiswamy, 2013; Brems, 2015; Brunner, Abramovitch, & Etherton, 2017; Büssing, Michalsen, Telles, Sherman, & Khalsa, 2012) This project introduces a system of yoga tools to buffer the psychological impact of COVID-19. This system of yoga tools is designed by Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev, a yogi, mystic, author, and founder of the Isha Foundation. The Isha foundation is a volunteer-based international non-profit organization, offering yoga and meditation programs for human wellbeing and global harmony. In partnership with the Isha Foundation and Harvard University Medical School, the study will document the short-term and long-term effects of these yogic practices on stress, mood, wellbeing, resilience, and academic engagement for students and work engagement for faculty and staff during this challenging time.
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tracy.chang@rutgers.edu2052666477