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Evaluating a mindfulness intervention for improving sleep and mental health in university students
Mental health, including depression and anxiety, difficulties are one of the biggest challenges that university students face. These difficulties have an impact on other aspects of functioning such as sleep quality and quantity. However, studies show a bidirectional relationship between sleep and me...
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| Format: | Thesis |
| Language: | English English |
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Department of Psychology
2025
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| _version_ | 1867613334101032960 |
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| access_status_str | Open Access |
| author | Oldjohn, Theophilus |
| author2 | Lipinska, Malgorzata |
| author_browse | Lipinska, Malgorzata Oldjohn, Theophilus |
| author_facet | Lipinska, Malgorzata Oldjohn, Theophilus |
| author_sort | Oldjohn, Theophilus |
| collection | Thesis |
| description | Mental health, including depression and anxiety, difficulties are one of the biggest challenges that university students face. These difficulties have an impact on other aspects of functioning such as sleep quality and quantity. However, studies show a bidirectional relationship between sleep and mental health challenges, hence continous poor sleep may lead to increased symptoms of anxiety and depression. Mindfulness has been recognised as an accessable treatments used to improve sleep and reduce mental health problems. The objective of this study was to evaluate mindfulness as an intervention for poor sleep, and subsequent mental health challenges in university students. The participants were divided into two groups, an intervention group (n = 20) that received mindfulness training and a control group (n = 18) that did not. The treatment intervention consisted of a daily 20- minute audio guided exercise which was completed over a 7-day period. I measured sleep quality, depressive and anxiety-related symptoms, and academic performance before and after the intervention/control period. Results showed no improvement in sleep quality and anxiety- related symptoms between the intervention and control groups. However, there was a decrease in depressive symptoms in participants who completed the mindfulness intervention. These findings highlight the positive influence of mindfulness on depressive symptoms in university students. However, future studies should further investigate the associations between mindfulness, sleep quality and mental health outcomes in students, who are vulnerable to a high burden of mental health difficulties. |
| format | Thesis |
| id | oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/41896 |
| institution | University of Cape Town (South Africa) |
| language | English eng |
| last_indexed | 2026-06-10T12:34:28.941Z |
| license_str | Not specified — see source repository |
| provenance_str_mv | Harvested via OAI-PMH from UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| publishDateRange | 2025 |
| publishDateSort | 2025 |
| publisher | Department of Psychology |
| publisherStr | Department of Psychology |
| record_format | dspace |
| source_str | UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository |
| spelling | oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/41896 Evaluating a mindfulness intervention for improving sleep and mental health in university students Oldjohn, Theophilus Lipinska, Malgorzata Henry, Michelle Mental Health University students Poor sleep Mindful intervention Mental health, including depression and anxiety, difficulties are one of the biggest challenges that university students face. These difficulties have an impact on other aspects of functioning such as sleep quality and quantity. However, studies show a bidirectional relationship between sleep and mental health challenges, hence continous poor sleep may lead to increased symptoms of anxiety and depression. Mindfulness has been recognised as an accessable treatments used to improve sleep and reduce mental health problems. The objective of this study was to evaluate mindfulness as an intervention for poor sleep, and subsequent mental health challenges in university students. The participants were divided into two groups, an intervention group (n = 20) that received mindfulness training and a control group (n = 18) that did not. The treatment intervention consisted of a daily 20- minute audio guided exercise which was completed over a 7-day period. I measured sleep quality, depressive and anxiety-related symptoms, and academic performance before and after the intervention/control period. Results showed no improvement in sleep quality and anxiety- related symptoms between the intervention and control groups. However, there was a decrease in depressive symptoms in participants who completed the mindfulness intervention. These findings highlight the positive influence of mindfulness on depressive symptoms in university students. However, future studies should further investigate the associations between mindfulness, sleep quality and mental health outcomes in students, who are vulnerable to a high burden of mental health difficulties. 2025-09-19T12:34:28Z 2025-09-19T12:34:28Z 2025 2025-09-19T07:36:06Z Thesis / Dissertation Masters Masters http://hdl.handle.net/11427/41896 en eng application/pdf Department of Psychology Faculty of Humanities University of Cape Town |
| spellingShingle | Mental Health University students Poor sleep Mindful intervention Oldjohn, Theophilus Evaluating a mindfulness intervention for improving sleep and mental health in university students |
| thesis_degree_str | Master's |
| title | Evaluating a mindfulness intervention for improving sleep and mental health in university students |
| title_full | Evaluating a mindfulness intervention for improving sleep and mental health in university students |
| title_fullStr | Evaluating a mindfulness intervention for improving sleep and mental health in university students |
| title_full_unstemmed | Evaluating a mindfulness intervention for improving sleep and mental health in university students |
| title_short | Evaluating a mindfulness intervention for improving sleep and mental health in university students |
| title_sort | evaluating a mindfulness intervention for improving sleep and mental health in university students |
| topic | Mental Health University students Poor sleep Mindful intervention |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/11427/41896 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT oldjohntheophilus evaluatingamindfulnessinterventionforimprovingsleepandmentalhealthinuniversitystudents |