Web-based Single-session Intervention of Mindset for Improving Pre-practicum Anxiety and Coping

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Status: Enrolling

Conditions: Anxiety

Treatments: Behavioral: Web-based Single-session Intervention of Mindset on Intelligence, Failure, and Emotion (We-SMILE)

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT06509802

HSEARS20240512001

Details and patient eligibility

About

Practicum is an essential educational component of professional training, however, the process can be challenging and sometimes frustrating, with obstacles such as the rigorous training process and mental distress. Being adequately prepared to confront the challenges and difficulties in practicum is crucial for the learning outcomes and psychological well-being of social work and/or counselling trainees. At the same time, mindset is found to be a modifiable factor in intervention, which is essential in clinical psychology, therapy, prevention, and early intervention. Instilling growth mindsets regarding intelligence, emotion, and failure-is-enhancing mindsets, respectively, is worthwhile in easing anxiety and stress coping. However, the existing intervention approaches lack of mindset integration, low intensity, distinctions of employees and interns, more objective and reliable outcome indictors and well-designed randomised controlled trials.

Using a two-arm randomised controlled trial, the proposed study will examine the efficacy of a Web-based Single-session Intervention of Mindset on Intelligence, Failure, and Emotion (We-SMILE) on reducing anxiety related to practicum and improving mental health and practicum-related outcomes.

A total of 117 students will be recruited from the social work and/or counselling programmes, and randomly assigned to existing pre-practicum training (Training As Usual, TAU) or that plus the We-SMILE. The intervention is 45 minutes in length. Participants will be assessed at three timepoints: baseline (T1), two weeks post-intervention (T2), and eight weeks post-intervention (T3). Patient and public involvement is adopted in the intervention design and implementation strategies. It is expected that the We-SMILE group will present lower anxiety related to practicum and more positive secondary outcomes (depression, anxiety, stress, psychological well-being, learning and performance orientation, academic self-efficacy, and confidence) compared to the TAU group. The intention-to-treat principle and linear-regression-based maximum likelihood multi-level models will be used for data analysis.

The study will not only provide evidence on integrated mindset intervention for trainees' mental health and learning outcomes, but also benefit social work and/or counselling supervisors and programmes as an accessible module.

Enrollment: 117 estimated patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18 to 24 years old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion and exclusion criteria

Pre-practicum students in social work and/or counselling programmes are eligible.

• Inclusion Criteria: students who

  1. are about to start the practicum soon;
  2. can read and write Chinese;
  3. consent to participate.

• Exclusion Criteria: students who

  1. do not consent to participate;
  2. cannot concentrate for at least 45 minutes to complete the intervention and questionnaires;
  3. have a disability or serious physical or mental illness resulting in poor condition;
  4. do not participate in the practicum.

Trial design

Primary purpose: Prevention

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Single Blind

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117 participants in 2 patient groups

Web-based Single-session Intervention of Mindset on Intelligence, Failure, and Emotion (We-SMILE)

Experimental group

Description:

We-SMILE introduces growth mindsets about intelligence, failure, and negative emotions to pre-practicum trainees, consisting of five components: (a) an introduction to a proactive mindset, including neuroplasticity, the malleability of intelligence and emotion, and the importance of failure and feedback in the learning process; (b) stories and testimonials during practicum which emphasise the belief in change; (c) short videos about allegories of developing intelligence, emotion, and failure mindsets; (d) common questions and misconceptions about growth mindsets; and (e) self-persuasive writing exercises in which participants write down their thoughts and suggestions for others about growth mindsets.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Web-based Single-session Intervention of Mindset on Intelligence, Failure, and Emotion (We-SMILE)

Training as usual group

No Intervention group

Description:

The training-as-usual group will continue the normal training and will be provided with repeated assessments at the same timeframe as the intervention group. Participants in training-as-usual group will receive the intervention course after finishing the eight-week follow-up questionnaire.