Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42179820›Full record

ArticleFrontiers in digital health2026

Mental health outcomes and use of online mental health tools following a public health deployment of the mindfulness meditation app headspace.

Judith Borghouts, Elizabeth V Eikey, Cinthia De Leon, Jeongmi Kim, Stephen M Schueller, Margaret Schneider, Nicole A Stadnick, Kai Zheng, Dara H Sorkin

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Frontiers in digital health, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors.

Judith BorghoutsDepartment of Medicine, University of California, Irvine, CA, United States.
Elizabeth V EikeyHerbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science, University of California, San Diego, CA, United States.
Cinthia De LeonDepartment of Medicine, University of California, Irvine, CA, United States.
Jeongmi KimDepartment of Medicine, University of California, Irvine, CA, United States.
Stephen M SchuellerDepartment of Informatics, University of California, Irvine, CA, United States.
Margaret SchneiderDepartment of Public Health, University of California, Irvine, CA, United States.
Nicole A StadnickDepartment of Psychiatry, University of California, San Diego, CA, United States.
Kai ZhengDepartment of Informatics, University of California, Irvine, CA, United States.
Dara H SorkinDepartment of Medicine, University of California, Irvine, CA, United States.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: Digital mental health interventions (DMHIs), such as mindfulness-based apps, have become popular mental health resources and can be associated with benefits such as reducing stress, anxiety, and depression. However, there are limited data on the impact of DMHIs on improving mental health outside of controlled research settings, and what factors may facilitate or inhibit such potential impact. This study aimed to understand whether use of Headspace, a mindfulness meditation app, within the context of a large-scale public deployment affected mental health outcomes, mental health stigma, and utilization of other mental health resources. Methods: All community members who received Headspace as part of the deployment ( Results: There was a significant decrease in distress and loneliness over time, regardless of how long or how frequently the participants used Headspace. Those who continued to use Headspace had a larger decrease in mental health stigma resistance compared to those who stopped using Headspace after time point 1. Additionally, those who stopped using Headspace were more likely to use other online mental health tools at time point 2 compared to those who continued to use Headspace. Conclusions: Taking part in a program that provides access to a mindfulness app like Headspace may be beneficial for those in need of mental health support. Additionally, people who moved on from Headspace may have already had or found other digital mental health resources that worked well or better for them.

Indexed as

digital mental health interventionsheadspacemental healthmental health resourcesmHealthmindfulness

Identifiers

PMID42179820
PMCPMC13190506

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.