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Enrolling by Invitation

NCT Number: NCT06513858

Evaluating the Community Drum Circle

Mental health vulnerability due to stress is increased America due to disproportionate effects of social factors such as racism, poverty, education, and criminal justice sentencing. Various meditation and mindfulness approaches have provided evidence of measured reductions in multiple negative dimensions of stress. However, the majority of these studies do not have an adequate representation of Persons of African Descent(PAD) or other marginalized groups and are not designed to be culturally relevant or community based. Music has been shown to alleviate multiple symptoms of stress and has been shown to be a preferred and effective support for meditation and mindfulness. However, its role in stress management in PADs engaged in meditation or mindfulness is seldom studied. This study aims to evaluate the effects of a community-based music mindfulness program on stress management in PAD community members with anxiety and depression during COVID19.

Component 2c. Drum Circle Study: Investigators will study the impact of participation in drum circles on anxiety and feelings of connectedness.

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Key information

Conditions

Mental Health Issue COVID-19 Coronaviridae Infections Coronavirus Infections Infections Lung Diseases Nidovirales Infections Pneumonia Pneumonia, Viral RNA Virus Infections Respiratory Tract Diseases Respiratory Tract Infections Virus Diseases

Age range

16 year–65 year

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Primary location

BLOOM, New Haven, Connecticut, United States

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About this study

The investigators also propose a study to investigate the effects of communal drumming in reducing anxiety and increasing connectedness within drum circle community. Investigators hypothesize that these intervention will lead to reductions in scores on stress scales and will provide preliminary data for studies evaluating these types of community programs as an adjunct to the standard of care.

Individuals who attend periodic (i.e. weekly) drum circles will be recruited to join an 8-week paradigm. Drum circle sessions may audio recorded and participants will be informed of this during the consent process. Participants may be asked to undergo Electroencepholography, functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy, and/or other physiological measures before, during, and after the circles. Upon completion of the experiments, participants will be asked to take part in a focus group that will provide valuable feedback on their experience with the mindfulness intervention. Focus groups will last 30-minutes to 1 hour and will occur in-person.

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: Yes

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

  • ages 16 and older

Exclusion criteria

  • ages 15 and younger

Treatment and study plan

Communal Drumming

Behavioral

Communal drumming

Communal drumming recordings

Behavioral

Recordings of drumming taken from the music made during a previous component of the study

Primary outcomes

  1. Rating of Absorption in music pre vs post sessions

    Time frame: Baseline on day of study visit before drum circle, during drum circle (45min), 30 min after music listening

    These ratings are classified on a scale from 0 to 1, with 0 indicating no absorption and 1 indicating complete absorption.

Secondary outcomes

  1. Altered States of Consciousness Rating Scale

    Time frame: Baseline on day of study visit before drum circle, during drum circle (45min), 30 min after music listening

    This scale has 94 statements and below each statement is a line with the endpoints "No, not more than usually" and "Yes, much more than usually." Each participant will rate to what extent the statements apply to their particular experience, compared to normal waking consciousness, by making a vertical mark on the line below the statements. Normal waking consciousness corresponds to a mark at the very left end of the scale, i.e.: "No, not more than usually."

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

Yale University

Other

Collaborators

  • National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)

Registry information

Official study title

Evaluating the Impact of Community-Based Mindfulness and Musical Programs on Psychiatric Measures, Drum Circle Study 2c.

Important dates

Study start
2024
Primary completion
2026
Study completion
2026
First posted
Jul 22, 2024
Registry last updated
Feb 12, 2026

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

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This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

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