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A meta-scientific approach to understanding stress regulation / ALESSANDRO SPARACIO

Swansea University Author: ALESSANDRO SPARACIO

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DOI (Published version): 10.23889/SUthesis.63454

Abstract

In the present Ph.D. project, I examined the efficacy of four strategies (i.e., self-administeredmindfulness, biofeedback, being in nature, and emotional social support) on stress reduction of individuals. To examine the empirical robustness of stress regulation strategies, we conducted two meta-ana...

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Published: Swansea, Wales, UK 2023
Institution: Swansea University
Degree level: Doctoral
Degree name: Ph.D
Supervisor: Jiga-Boy, Gabriela., IJzerman, Hans. and Ropovik, Ivan.
URI: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa63454
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To examine the empirical robustness of stress regulation strategies, we conducted two meta-analyses of the literature on these strategies, and one multi-site study experimentally examining the effect of one of the strategies (self-administered mindfulness) on stress regulation.In chapter 2, I present the result of a Registered Report meta-analysis in which we appraised the available evidence of being in nature and emotional social support on stress levels. After applying our publication bias correction techniques, we found an effect for the former strategy but not for the latter one. In chapter 3, I conducted a pre-registered meta-analysis that investigated whether two internal regulation strategies (i.e., self-administered mindfulness and biofeedback) could be considered reliable strategies for regulating stress levels. We found no evidence for the reduction of stress levels for these two strategies. Finally, in chapter 4, I present the results of a highly powered multi-site study thatinvestigated the efficacy of four single, brief stand-alone mindfulness exercises (versus three active control conditions) on self-reported experiences of stress in a population unfamiliar with mindfulness meditation. Results of the multi-site study provided evidence that participants had lower levels of self-reported levels of stress when they listened to one of the mindfulness exercises compared to those that were in the control conditions. In both meta-analyses, the high heterogeneity, the low-quality of the included studies, and the presence of publication bias cast doubts on the strength of evidence behind the studied effects. For what concerns the multi-site project, even if we cannot exclude the presence of a demand effect, our results hold promise for the efficacy of self-administered mindfulness interventions for the downregulation of stress. Taken together these studies suggest that stress levels can be reduced by relying on strategies that are non-pharmacological, non-invasive, and low-cost. 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Distributed under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License (CC BY 4.0).</documentNotes><copyrightCorrect>true</copyrightCorrect><language>eng</language><licence>https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/</licence></document></documents><OutputDurs/></rfc1807>
spelling v2 63454 2023-05-15 A meta-scientific approach to understanding stress regulation badd45e8997db2a987509608ab0b1b14 ALESSANDRO SPARACIO ALESSANDRO SPARACIO true false 2023-05-15 In the present Ph.D. project, I examined the efficacy of four strategies (i.e., self-administeredmindfulness, biofeedback, being in nature, and emotional social support) on stress reduction of individuals. To examine the empirical robustness of stress regulation strategies, we conducted two meta-analyses of the literature on these strategies, and one multi-site study experimentally examining the effect of one of the strategies (self-administered mindfulness) on stress regulation.In chapter 2, I present the result of a Registered Report meta-analysis in which we appraised the available evidence of being in nature and emotional social support on stress levels. After applying our publication bias correction techniques, we found an effect for the former strategy but not for the latter one. In chapter 3, I conducted a pre-registered meta-analysis that investigated whether two internal regulation strategies (i.e., self-administered mindfulness and biofeedback) could be considered reliable strategies for regulating stress levels. We found no evidence for the reduction of stress levels for these two strategies. Finally, in chapter 4, I present the results of a highly powered multi-site study thatinvestigated the efficacy of four single, brief stand-alone mindfulness exercises (versus three active control conditions) on self-reported experiences of stress in a population unfamiliar with mindfulness meditation. Results of the multi-site study provided evidence that participants had lower levels of self-reported levels of stress when they listened to one of the mindfulness exercises compared to those that were in the control conditions. In both meta-analyses, the high heterogeneity, the low-quality of the included studies, and the presence of publication bias cast doubts on the strength of evidence behind the studied effects. For what concerns the multi-site project, even if we cannot exclude the presence of a demand effect, our results hold promise for the efficacy of self-administered mindfulness interventions for the downregulation of stress. Taken together these studies suggest that stress levels can be reduced by relying on strategies that are non-pharmacological, non-invasive, and low-cost. Future studies (preferably in the form of Registered Reports) should try to make up for these shortcomings of the literature with well-powered studies and with the use of physiological measurements that could reduce the problem of the demand effect for studies on mindfulness. E-Thesis Swansea, Wales, UK Stress regulation, meta-analysis, mindfulness, open science, multi-site 30 3 2023 2023-03-30 10.23889/SUthesis.63454 A selection of content is redacted or is partially redacted from this thesis to protect sensitive and personal information. COLLEGE NANME COLLEGE CODE Swansea University Jiga-Boy, Gabriela., IJzerman, Hans. and Ropovik, Ivan. Doctoral Ph.D This thesis was half-funded by Swansea University Strategic Partnerships Research Scholarships (SUSPRS) in 2019, awarded to Dr Gabriela Jiga-Boy and half-funded by a French National Research Agency ”Investissements d’avenir” program grant (ANR-15-IDEX-02) and a grant from the MIBODA project both awarded to Hans IJzerman. 2023-09-28T15:39:08.9885609 2023-05-15T10:57:28.1234113 Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences School of Psychology ALESSANDRO SPARACIO 1 63454__27471__e07d2c07daf3458bad45b30127096a85.pdf 2023_Sparacio_A.final.63454.pdf 2023-05-15T11:09:21.2983543 Output 2446498 application/pdf E-Thesis – open access true Copyright: The Author, Alessandro Sparacio, 2023. Distributed under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License (CC BY 4.0). true eng https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
title A meta-scientific approach to understanding stress regulation
spellingShingle A meta-scientific approach to understanding stress regulation
ALESSANDRO SPARACIO
title_short A meta-scientific approach to understanding stress regulation
title_full A meta-scientific approach to understanding stress regulation
title_fullStr A meta-scientific approach to understanding stress regulation
title_full_unstemmed A meta-scientific approach to understanding stress regulation
title_sort A meta-scientific approach to understanding stress regulation
author_id_str_mv badd45e8997db2a987509608ab0b1b14
author_id_fullname_str_mv badd45e8997db2a987509608ab0b1b14_***_ALESSANDRO SPARACIO
author ALESSANDRO SPARACIO
author2 ALESSANDRO SPARACIO
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department_str School of Psychology{{{_:::_}}}Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences{{{_:::_}}}School of Psychology
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description In the present Ph.D. project, I examined the efficacy of four strategies (i.e., self-administeredmindfulness, biofeedback, being in nature, and emotional social support) on stress reduction of individuals. To examine the empirical robustness of stress regulation strategies, we conducted two meta-analyses of the literature on these strategies, and one multi-site study experimentally examining the effect of one of the strategies (self-administered mindfulness) on stress regulation.In chapter 2, I present the result of a Registered Report meta-analysis in which we appraised the available evidence of being in nature and emotional social support on stress levels. After applying our publication bias correction techniques, we found an effect for the former strategy but not for the latter one. In chapter 3, I conducted a pre-registered meta-analysis that investigated whether two internal regulation strategies (i.e., self-administered mindfulness and biofeedback) could be considered reliable strategies for regulating stress levels. We found no evidence for the reduction of stress levels for these two strategies. Finally, in chapter 4, I present the results of a highly powered multi-site study thatinvestigated the efficacy of four single, brief stand-alone mindfulness exercises (versus three active control conditions) on self-reported experiences of stress in a population unfamiliar with mindfulness meditation. Results of the multi-site study provided evidence that participants had lower levels of self-reported levels of stress when they listened to one of the mindfulness exercises compared to those that were in the control conditions. In both meta-analyses, the high heterogeneity, the low-quality of the included studies, and the presence of publication bias cast doubts on the strength of evidence behind the studied effects. For what concerns the multi-site project, even if we cannot exclude the presence of a demand effect, our results hold promise for the efficacy of self-administered mindfulness interventions for the downregulation of stress. Taken together these studies suggest that stress levels can be reduced by relying on strategies that are non-pharmacological, non-invasive, and low-cost. Future studies (preferably in the form of Registered Reports) should try to make up for these shortcomings of the literature with well-powered studies and with the use of physiological measurements that could reduce the problem of the demand effect for studies on mindfulness.
published_date 2023-03-30T15:39:10Z
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score 11.013371

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