Honors Projects

Abstract

The proposed study would investigate the effects of a tea-based sensory mindfulness exercise on stress in college aged participants. Participants would listen to a mindful tea exercise and a non-mindful tea exercise after a mild stress-inducing Stroop test. For both conditions, the participants would report their current state of distress on the Subjective Units of Distress Scale (SUDS) before and after each tea exercise and their heart rate variability (HRV) would be measured during each segment of the experiment.

Descriptive statistics and a paired samples t-test would be used to compare the mindful tea condition with the non-mindful condition following the Stroop Test. I would expect participants to show a larger increase in HRV during the mindful condition compared to the non-mindful condition. Additionally, I would expect participants to report a greater decrease in stress from the mindful tea condition compared to the non-mindful condition following the Stroop Test. The proposed study could provide evidence in support of a mindful tea intervention for short-term recovery in college aged students, addressing the need for affordable and accessible interventions across college campuses.

Department

Honors Program

Major

Psychology

First Advisor

Dr. William O'Brien

First Advisor Department

Psychology

Second Advisor

Dr. Kate Vallerand

Second Advisor Department

Public and Allied Health

Publication Date

Spring 4-29-2026

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