DOI: 10.3886/icpsr39316
title: Randomized Controlled Trial of a Novel Mindset Intervention for Depression and Immune Dysregulation, United States, 2022-2023
title: Archival Version

description: People who live through large-scale societal catastrophes such as the COVID-19 pandemic are at a heightened risk of mental illness in the years afterward, but can also experience positive changes in their sense of meaning, personal relationships, and self-esteem, among other domains. The researchers propose that differences in these mental health trajectories may be partially influenced by individuals' mindsets about the long-term effects of living through catastrophes. To test this possibility, the researchers conducted a randomized controlled trial of a brief, psychologically-wise intervention designed to promote the mindset that "catastrophes can be opportunities in the long-term." A sample of 548 adults were randomized to either the mindset intervention condition or a control task.
description: The primary objective of this study is to determine whether the 'Catastrophes can be Opportunities' (CO) mindset intervention can promote Post-Traumatic Growth
among Americans in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
description: This study consisted of two cohorts, one of which (the "non-physio" participants) completed
only the intervention/control tasks and questionnaires, and the other of which (the "physio"
participants) also took blood samples at three time points. To be eligible for either cohort,
respondents had to have completed four previous longitudinal COVID-19 surveys, and
indicated an interest in participating in future studies with the Mind & Body Lab.
Respondents who were interested in being part of the physio branch were emailed an invitation
to complete the prescreening survey to determine medical eligibility.
The 'Catastrophes can be Opportunities' (CO) mindset intervention consisted of two parts spread out over several months. In Pt. 1,
participants watched a series of 5 videos, each 2-4 minutes in length, that discussed the
self-fulfilling properties of mindsets, as well as the ways that catastrophic events can open up
opportunities for growth. After watching each video, participants were prompted to write about
the mindsets that they held towards the COVID-19 pandemic and how these mindsets might
encourage or discourage post-traumatic growth in the pandemic's aftermath. Finally, the
participants learned some simple strategies for mindset change and were encouraged to identify
areas of their lives in which the pandemic had motivated them to grow. In Pt. 2, participants read
through their free-response answers from Pt. 1 and were prompted to write again about areas of
their lives in which they wanted to grow over the next 6 months.
Pt. 1 of the control task also consisted of 5 videos, each 2-4 minutes in length. The videos
provided a chronological overview of the major events of the COVID-19 pandemic from
late-2019 to mid-2021. They discussed the origins of COVID-19 in China, the virus's spread
around the world, and the steps that governments and scientists took to combat it. Unlike the
intervention videos, they do not discuss mindsets or post-traumatic growth, nor did they
encourage participants to identify ways in which they had already grown or would like to grow
as a result of their experiences during the pandemic. As such, they are controlled for the
intervention task's focus on the COVID-19 pandemic without promoting any given mindset
towards the pandemic. After watching each video, they completed short multiple-choice
questions designed to serve both as attention checks and to help participants review the material.
In Pt. 2, participants were prompted to reflect back on the videos and write briefly about their
experiences during the pandemic.
description: Response Rates: 3560 individuals were invited to complete the participant interest form. Of these, 1148 (32%) indicated a desire to participate and met the prescreening criteria. 548 participants successfully completed the baseline survey and blood sample and were randomized. 379 completed their assigned intervention/control tasks and were included in the final analysis.
description: Presence of Common Scales: 
Post-Traumatic Growth Inventory - Current Standing (C-PTGI)
Meaning in Life Questionnaire (MLQ)
Brief Resilience Scale (BRS)
Positive and Negative Affect Scale (PANAS)
4-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-4)
Mental Health Condition - Short Form (MHC-SF): Social Well-Being Subscale
Stress Mindset Measure (SMM)
6-item Primals Inventory (PI-6)
New General Self-Efficacy Scale
Coronavirus Impact Scale
description: Participants were recruited in the context of a larger longitudinal survey study examining the influence of mindsets on health and well-being over the course of the pandemic*. Individuals who completed all four longitudinal surveys and indicated an interest in future research were recruited from October 10th - 15th, 2022.
*For a detailed description of this longitudinal survey study, see Making sense of a pandemic: Mindsets influence emotions, behaviors, health, and wellbeing during the COVID-19 pandemic.
description: Datasets: 
DS1: Randomized Controlled Trial of a Novel Mindset Intervention for Depression and Immune Dysregulation, United States, 2022-2023
description: American adults living through the COVID-19 pandemic.
description: web-based survey