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Healing Hearts: A Mindfulness App for Parents Navigating Divorce or Separation

University of Connecticut · with National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) · NCT07871916

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Opens the official ClinicalTrials.gov record, with the study team’s contacts. Bored Studies doesn’t enroll anyone.

Key facts

Compensation
Not posted. Ask the study team before screening.
Who can join
Ages 18+ · All sexes
Healthy volunteers
Accepted
Study type
Interventional · Not applicable
Target enrollment
96
US sites recruiting
1
Study start
October 5, 2026
Record last updated
October 13, 2026

Status re-checked against ClinicalTrials.gov within the last 12 hours.

What the study is about

This study examines online programs for parents navigating divorce or separation. Researchers will study whether a self-guided mindfulness app called Healing Hearts, followed by a self-guided online parenting program called the electronic New Beginnings Program, is feasible and acceptable to parents and shows promising effects on parent and child wellbeing. Ninety-six parents who live in the United States, have a child aged 6 to 18 with a former partner, and report mild to moderate psychological distress will be randomly assigned to one of three groups: Healing Hearts followed by the parenting program, the parenting program alone, or a set of online educational resources. Participants complete online assessments before assignment, about seven weeks later, and about seven weeks after the second assessment. The study measures parent wellbeing, parenting, parent reports of child behavior, program use, and participant experiences. All participation takes place remotely.

Being studied: Healing Hearts; electronic New Beginnings Program; Curated internet resources

Conditions: Mental Health; Parenting / Maternal Behavior; Parenting Anxiety; Parenting Behavior; Stress; Psychological Distress; Depression and Anxiety Symptoms; Internalizing Problems; Externalizing Problems

Eligibility criteria

Copied from the official record. The study team makes the final decision at screening.

Show full criteria

Inclusion Criteria

  • Age 18 years or older.
  • Able to speak, read, and write in English; living in the United States.
  • Has a mobile device, internet access on that device, and uses email.
  • Identifies as a parent and has at least one child aged 6 to 18 years with an ex-partner. Parenting time with the target child exceeds 3 hours/week.
  • Is going through a legal process to separate or divorce; or was married and divorced or legally separated within the past 3 years; or was never married to the ex-partner and has a qualifying separation marker within the past 3 years.
  • For never-married parents, the listed markers are child custody, visitation, or formal parenting-plan proceedings or agreements; child-support proceedings or agreements; dissolution of a domestic partnership or civil union; or either partner moving out and maintaining separate households.
  • Reports a Kessler 6 psychological distress score from 1 through 12, inclusive.

Exclusion Criteria

  • Low-speed internet.
  • Current regular mind-body practices, such as meditation or yoga.
  • The parent or target child is in psychotherapy or other clinical research.
  • Kessler 6 score of 0 or 13 or higher.
  • History of major psychiatric disorders.
  • Current alcohol use problems.

Recruiting US locations

  • University of Connecticut

    Stamford, CT 06901

    Site contact: Zhang · 2035617045 · nazhang@uconn.edu

Study contacts (from the official record)

  • Na Zhang, PhD · 2035617045 · nazhang@uconn.edu
All mental health studies in Connecticut →
Healing Hearts: A Mindfulness App for Parents Navigating Divorce… (NCT07871916) | Bored Studies