Exploring the uptake and potential efficacy of brief mindfulness meditation for underserved female tobacco smokers

Mindfulness is associated with positive psychosocial, physical and mental health outcomes prompting research to investigate mindfulness as a tool for smoking cessation. However, there remains sparse evidence on the acceptability and effectiveness of mindfulness interventions in underserved populations, such as low-income, female smokers, who often have elevated levels of daily stress and greater barriers to health behavior change. The primary study aim is to investigate the acceptability and feasibility of a 4-week, individualized, text-based mindfulness meditation intervention with low-income female smokers. Focus groups (n=16) will inform necessary tailoring of methods to the target population, and a pilot single-group pre-post intervention study (n=70) will test its acceptability, feasibility and potential efficacy in reducing stress, negative affect, and smoking urge reactivity (outcomes) which are known barriers to smoking cessation. The intervention will include daily 10-minute meditation recordings. Change in outcomes will be explored using a pre-post, behavioral lab-based cue reactivity paradigm. Telephone follow-up on outcome measures will occur 1-week and 1-month post intervention. Outcomes will be analyzed with t-tests and logistic growth curve modeling. The proposed study explores feasibility and potential efficacy of a brief, tailored intervention which will guide the translation of mindfulness-based interventions to underserved populations.