Changing stress mindsets with a novel imagery intervention: A randomized controlled trial.

= 150) attended a research laboratory twice over 2 weeks, receiving the intervention or control condition stimuli in Session 1, and completing measures in both sessions. Academic performance data was collected from university records. Mixed model ANOVAs revealed a large-sized difference in stress mindset among intervention group participants immediately following the intervention and at the follow-up relative to controls. There were also robust effects of the intervention on perceived distress, positive and negative affect, proactive behavior, and academic performance at the follow-up in individuals with high baseline perceived distress, although not in the whole sample. Findings indicate that the intervention is a promising approach for changing individuals' stress mindset and that changing stress mindset can have beneficial effects on coping with ecological stressors. Future research should use intensive longitudinal designs to examine momentary activation of stress mindset and responses to ecological stress. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).