Publication date: Feb 12, 2025

College students face significant mental health challenges that were exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Evidence suggests mental-health burdens are substantial and resources limited. We sought to replicate research supporting a one-time daily ambulatory intervention to facilitate regulation of negative emotion and increase generation of positive emotion. The Daily Coping Toolkit (DCT) was developed at the outset of the pandemic and was effective in boosting mood in front-line medical personnel in an open-trial (Coifman, K. G. , et al. [2021]. Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 78(8), 555-557. https://doi. org/10. 1136/oemed-2021-107427. This investigation replicated the DCT against a control condition in college students returning to campus in early 2021. N = 125 college students were randomized to experimental conditions (two-prompt v. one-prompt) or the control condition. Data analysis was preregistered. Analyses indicated students in experimental groups experienced significant decreases in negative and increases in positive emotion when compared to controls, providing evidence of efficacy. This was notable because a high proportion of participants reported prior mental illness. Although there was no difference by number of prompts (two-prompt v. one-prompt) on emotional reports, there was preliminary evidence the one-prompt condition was associated with greater self-care behaviors (e. g., exercise, social support seeking). The results suggest the DCT is an efficacious emotion-regulation intervention that can boost mood during stress.

Semantics

Original Article