Clinical Research Directory

A Reinforced Mindfulness-Based Intervention to Reduce Problematic Drinking Among Hispanic Emerging Adults

This study is a trial to evaluate a mindfulness program designed for Hispanic young adults. Participants will be randomly assigned to one of two groups: (1) an in-person, 8-week mindfulness program (one 1.5-hour session per week at FIU's MMC campus), or (2) an assessment-only control group. Regardless of group assignment. Participants will be asked to complete online surveys at baseline, after an 8-week period, and again one month later. They will also be asked to provide a fingerpick blood sample and have their heart rate and blood pressure measured at four timepoints: baseline, 1 month, 2 months, and 3 months after baseline. Participation will involve up to 16 hours over approximately 14 weeks. This includes time for completing baseline assessments, participating in the 8-week intervention (if assigned), and completing post-program and follow-up assessments. There are no serious risks of participating in this study, but some of the questions during the assessments, interview, or the fingerpick may cause you discomfort. The main benefit from participating in this clinical trial is that participants may experience personal benefits from learning mindfulness techniques.

Understanding the Associations Between Romantic Relationship Conflict, Psychophysiological Responding and Alcohol Misuse Among Emerging Adults

Emerging Adults (EA) engage in heavy episodic drinking (HED) at a greater quantity and frequency than any other time in their lives, which may lead to significant short- and long-term consequences. Although much is known about the influence of peers in EA alcohol use, there is a dearth of research examining the ways in which romantic partners influence EA drinking behaviors. The proposed study bridges a crucial gap in the existing literature by examining behavioral and physiological risk and resilience factors in the acute link between EA relationship conflict and alcohol consumption. EA couples will engage in two conflict resolution tasks interspersed with two puzzle tasks and two alcohol administration procedures. Because high frequency heart rate variability (HF-HRV) is associated with alcohol use and emotion regulation during stressful experiences, HF-HRV and other physiological data will be collected throughout the laboratory procedures.