HRVB for Stress and Anxiety During Dentistry Students' Clinical Transition

Plain-language summary

The goal of this clinical trial is to learn if Heart Rate Variability Biofeedback (HRVB) can reduce stress and anxiety in dentistry students during the transition from pre-clinical training to clinical practice. The main questions this study aims to answer are: 1. Does HRVB training reduce perceived stress, measured with the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10), from baseline to post-intervention and to 2-month follow-up? 2. Does HRVB training reduce psychological distress, measured with the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale, 10-item version (K-10), from baseline to post-intervention and to 2-month follow-up? 3. Does HRVB training reduce anxiety, measured with the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, Form Y, State subscale state anxiety (STAI Y-1), from baseline to post-intervention and to 2-month follow-up? Researchers will compare an HRVB training group to a control group (no intervention) to see if HRVB leads to greater improvements in stress, distress, and anxiety across the study time points. Participants will: * Receive study information and provide electronic informed consent. * Complete online baseline questionnaires (sociodemographic questionnaire, K-10, PSS-10, and STAI Y-1). * Be randomly assigned to one of two groups: HRVB training or control (no intervention). * If assigned to the HRVB group, complete a 5-week program with 10 sessions (twice per week; about 10 minutes per session) using an emWave2 HRVB device; participants will practice slow breathing (about 6 breaths per minute) while recalling a positive memory, with real-time feedback provided in a game format. * If assigned to the HRVB group, practice the breathing exercise daily. * If assigned to the control group, not receive HRVB sessions or daily breathing training as part of the study, and only complete the study assessments at the scheduled time points. * Complete the post-intervention assessment online after the intervention period (same questionnaires as baseline except the sociodemographic questionnaire). * Complete a follow-up assessment online about 2 months after the end of the intervention period; participants will be contacted by email to complete this follow-up questionnaire.

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Trial details