Meditation Practice

Increasing Meditation Through a Text Messaging Intervention

What is the Problem?

• What prompts help begin a practice?

• What prompts help revive a practice?

• What prompts help continue a practice?

• When is the best time to send prompts?

Questions to Answer

• Who is in our study?

• What should we know about them? (baseline)

• What is the best time to reach them?

• Should we use “meditate” or “take deep breaths”?

• How do we control for social pressure on friends?

• What prompts should we use? – Categories

Week 1: Prompt Fidelity Test

• Humor: Be here now. Be someplace else later. Is that so complicated? David Bader asks you to please take the time for 18 deep breaths

• Motivation: Peace comes from within. Do not seek it without.”-Buddha. Please find peace with 18 breaths.

• Benefits: Meditation can help you build skills to manage your stress. Please give yourself time to start with 18 breaths.

• Social Proof: Jeff Bridges meditates http://bit.ly/1bvE8Tk. Who wouldn't want to be on the same list as the Dude? 18 deep breaths will really tie your day together.

First Steps

• Initial Survey

• Invite and instruct participants– If took 18 deep breaths, respond with a few

words about how you feel.– If you did not take 18 deep breaths, send “next

time.”

Yes No

Current Meditation Practice

3 10

Want Meditation Practice

13 0

Week 1: When to Prompt?

Control prompt: “Thank you for your help. Please take 18 deep breaths.”

Results: Response rates were similar, yielding insufficient evidence to determine a preferred time of day to send prompts.

Time Respond Took Deep Breaths

Noon 18/45 16/45

6pm 16/40 15/40

denominator = total possible responses * 5 day period

Week 1 Results: Control

Respond Deep Breaths

13/16 11/16

Slightly more relaxed

A needed moment

Relaxed and ready to take on the rest of the day

Respond Deep Breaths

8/16 8/16

Relieved

Warmth

Feeling Relaxed

Respond DeepBreaths

9/16 6/16

I needed that pauseand those breaths

Able to calm my swirling thoughts

I am not a robot

Respond Deep Breaths

5/16 4/16

I feel glad for the pause

Already took them today

Respond Deep Breaths

6/16 6/16

Strung the fuck out

Really not focused

Feeling peaceful

Responses from 16 Participants

Week 2

Parameters

Because results showed that the time of day did not affect results, we decided to send all of the text messages at 3pm so that all participants are in a new condition.

Different text message sent everyday.

Thursday

“If trees could scream, would we be so cavalier about cutting them down? We might, if they screamed all the time, for no good reason.” Jack Handy asks you to please remember to take 18 breaths.

Friday

“Peace comes from within. Do not seek it without.”-Buddha. Please find peace with 18 breaths.

Monday

Meditation can help you build skills to manage your stress. Please give yourself time to start with 18 breaths

Tuesday

Olympians meditate, do you? http://tinyurl.com/mr9lqk7 Join the olympians by taking 18 breaths

Wednesday

Thank you for your help. Please take 18 deep breaths.”

Lessons Learned:

The humor text message cannot be too irrelevant to meditation. If it is too random, participants might react negatively to the text message.

Week 3

Parameter Changes

Due to the negative reaction to the first humor text message, a different humor text message was chosen.

All other parameters remained the same from the previous week.

Thursday

This program has already increased meditation at the NSA by 20%. Please join them in taking 18 deep breaths.

Friday

"Feelings come and go like clouds in a windy sky. Conscious breathing is my anchor.” -Thich Nhat Hanh. Please anchor yourself with 18 breaths.

Monday

Meditation provides peace of mind and happiness. Please give yourself time to start with 18 breaths.

Tuesday

Jeff Bridges meditates http://bit.ly/1bvE8Tk. Who wouldn't want to be on the same list as the Dude? 18 deep breaths will really tie your day together

Wednesday

Thank you for your help. Please take 18 deep breaths.

Lessons Learned:Compliance dropped off significantly over time…likely need to send a follow up email, or conduct some sort of check-in

Week 2 (#/16) Week 3 (#/16)

Responds Takes Breaths Responds Takes Breaths

Humor 4 4 3 3

Motivation 6 6 5 5

Benefits 4 4 4 4

Social Proof 2 2 2 1

Control 4 4 3 3

Example responses

Humor Tired, numb aloofDone

Too busy to focus on breathing

Motivation Much better, thank youDone: I’ve started to use this to calm down at other points of the day.

At peaceThx

Benefits IritatedAaaaaahhhhhhhh

Less than happyCold but smoke free

Social Proof Not todayTook mine at the beginning of yoga class

The Dude abides. Took my breaths. Feeling good.

Control Done, relaxingHappy, content with a twinge of anxiety

ThankfulAt last a quiet moment

Week 2 & 3 Results

Post-Survey Results (n=11)Ranked Prompts

1. Meditation can help you build skills to manage your stress. Please give yourself time to start with 18 deep breaths.

2. “Peace comes from within. Do not seek it without. – Buddha. Please find peace with 18 breaths.”

3. Meditation provides peace of mind and happiness. Please give yourself time to start with 18 deep breaths.

9. Jeff Bridges meditates http://bit.ly/1bvE8Tk. Who wouldn’t want to be on the same list as the Dude? 18 deep breaths will really tie your day together.

Text Message Prompts Ranked by Mean

Breaths without response All: 1 Most: 2 Few: 3

Post-Survey Results: Qualitative Feedback

• Add the number that sends the texts to contacts as somethingspecific, like "Breathing Guide”... That would make it more personalwithout linking it specifically to one of you.

• I often times received the text messages in the middle of doing work.It allowed me to slow down and breath.

• Why we're there not texts on the weekends?

• I appreciate the idea of the project but 18 breaths was way too many.I'm in a high energy job and could never stop at the moment Ireceived the text…

• I found it much more difficult to take the time for 18 breaths in themiddle of the workday than I was expecting. Often I'd plan to takethem a few minutes later and then forget. Also, I felt like I needed tocome up with original responses each time, when the effect of thebreathing was about the same most of the time.

Challenges/Risks

• Defining the problem

• Choosing the prompts to use

• Minimizing participants’ accountability to us since they are our friends

Future Plans

Combine the SMS triggers with more information about mediation practices to help prepare users.

Add a potential social-network outlet.