Two-week mindfulness or social-media reduction plus exercise program to improve college students' well-being
Official title: Social Media Use Study
Run by Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health · NCT07097545 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project will test whether daily 15-minute mindfulness meditations or cutting 30 minutes of social media and replacing that time with exercise for two weeks can reduce social media use and improve well-being in Johns Hopkins students who use social media more than an hour a day.
Quick facts
| Study type | Interventional |
|---|---|
| Ages | 18 Years and up |
| Sex | All |
| Enrollment | 300 (estimated) |
| Sponsor | Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Academic / other |
| Locations | 1 site (Baltimore, Maryland) |
| Status | Recruiting |
| Started | August 24, 2025 |
| Main results expected | December 2026 |
| Study ends | January 2027 |
| Registry record updated | December 17, 2025 |
| Trial ID | NCT07097545 on ClinicalTrials.gov |
Is this trial a fit for you?
✓Likely a good fit
Johns Hopkins University students aged 18 or older who own a smartphone, use social media more than one hour per day, agree to share phone usage screenshots, and typically exercise one hour or less daily.
✕Probably not a fit
Students who use social media less than one hour per day, exercise more than one hour daily, cannot share smartphone usage data, or are not Johns Hopkins students are unlikely to benefit or be eligible.
A plain-English reading of the study's rules. Only the study team can confirm whether you qualify.
What this trial studies
Researchers will randomize 300 Johns Hopkins University students who use social media at least one hour daily into three groups: no intervention, a daily 15-minute mindfulness meditation from the Calm app, or a daily 30-minute social media reduction replaced by physical exercise. Interventions run for two weeks with participants completing activities each day. The team will collect self-report measures and behavioral smartphone screenshots of screen time at baseline, immediately after the two-week intervention, and one week later (three-week follow-up). The trial compares changes in social media use and psychological measures such as well-being, stress, depression, anxiety, loneliness, and social comparison.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, these brief, low-cost interventions could lower daily social media time and modestly improve mood, stress, and overall well-being in college students.
How similar studies have gone: Previous brief mindfulness and digital-reduction interventions in university samples have shown modest, sometimes short-lived improvements in mood and reduced screen time, but results across studies have been mixed.
Who can join: the full rules
Show full inclusion / exclusion criteria
Inclusion Criteria: * The participant is 18 or older. * The participant must be a Johns Hopkins University student. * Owning an iPhone or Android smartphone, with frequent use of social media use daily (\> 1 hour) * Enabling and sharing screenshots of the participant's smartphone use metrics, including number of last-week pickups, notifications received, and average screen time. * Providing consent to participate. * Only exercising 1 hour or less daily, on average. Exclusion Criteria: * younger than 18 * Not a Johns Hopkins University Student * Doesn't own a smart phone * Uses smartphone less than 1 hour daily * Exercises more than 1 hour daily
Where it's running
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Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, Maryland, United States Recruiting
Study contacts
- Principal investigator: Johannes Thrul, PhD — Johns Hopkins University
- Study coordinator: Johannes Thrul, PhD
- Email: jthrul@jhu.edu
- Phone: (443) 318-6633
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How to take part
- Review the eligibility criteria above with your treating physician.
- Check the official listing on ClinicalTrials.gov for the latest contact details and recruitment status.
- Contact the study coordinator or principal investigator to ask for pre-screening. Pre-screening is free and never obligates you to enroll.