Optimization of a Transdiagnostic Mobile Emotion Regulation Intervention for University Students: Protocol for a Micro Randomized Trial

This protocol details the evaluation of a transdiagnostic mobile app intervention targeting emotion regulation (ER) skills developed to support university students’ mental health. The study utilizes a sequential mixed-method design combining a Micro Randomized Trial (MRT) with semi-structured interviews.In the MRT, 200 participants will use the application for 3 weeks assessing their emotional states and completing a randomly assigned intervention or a control intervention twice a day. A subsample of participants (n=21) will participate in user experience interviews.Primary outcomes include proximal effects of the intervention and its components on participants’ emotional states and user experience. Secondary outcomes include distal outcomes of the intervention (i.e., ER-skills, distress symptoms). Exploratory analyses will examine contextual moderators. The results will inform how the intervention functions and what improvements should be made to optimize its’ uptake and effectiveness. The data gathered will facilitate the development of a recommendation system linking students to relevant content.