Efficacy of Mindfulness-Based Intervention and Dance Movement Therapy for Emotion Regulation among Young Adults with Adverse Childhood Experiences: A Non-Inferiority Randomized Controlled Trial

Background:

Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) are known to disrupt emotional development, often resulting in persistent emotional dysregulation (ED), a transdiagnostic construct implicated across a wide range of psychiatric conditions. Emotional dysregulation has been identified as a key mediator linking ACEs to long-term mental health difficulties. Since emotion regulation skills can be cultivated through targeted interventions, they represent a promising avenue for mitigating the psychological impact of early adversity. Emotion regulation involves both top-down processes **(**thinking and self-control led by the brain’s prefrontal cortex) and bottom-up processes **(**automatic emotional reactions driven by deeper brain regions like the amygdala). ACEs can disturb this balance, making emotional reactions stronger and harder to manage, while weakening the brain’s ability to regulate them. While prominent psychotherapeutic approaches to managing emotional dysregulation largely focus on enhancing top-down control mechanisms, Dance Movement Therapy (DMT) offers a prominently bottom-up, body-based alternative. However, evidence comparing its efficacy to more established approaches like Mindfulness-Based Interventions (MBIs) remains limited.

Aim:

To study the efficacy of dance movement therapy (DMT) in comparison with mindfulness-based intervention (MBI) for emotion regulation among young adults with adverse childhood experiences.

Objectives:

• To study the efficacy of mindfulness-based intervention for emotion regulation among young adults with adverse childhood experiences.

• To study the efficacy of dance movement therapy for emotion regulation among young adults with adverse childhood experiences.

• To examine if dance movement therapy will be non-inferior to mindfulness- based interventions.

• To study and compare emotional distress, mindfulness and body connection before, after and at follow-up of mindfulness-based intervention and dance movement therapy among young adults with adverse childhood experiences.

Methodology:

The proposed study will employ a quantitative research approach using a non-inferiority randomized controlled trial design to compare the efficacy of Mindfulness-Based Interventions (MBIs) and Dance Movement Therapy (DMT) in enhancing emotion regulation among college-going young adults (aged 18–25 years). Participants will be recruited through purposive sampling and initially screened using the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire – Short Form (CTQ-SF). Those scoring above the established cut-off will be assessed using the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale – 16 item version (DERS-16). Individuals identified as having mild to moderate difficulties in emotion regulation will be recruited for interventions. Eligible participants will then be randomly assigned to either an 8-session DMT program or an 8-session MBI program. Standardized assessments including the DERS-16, Scale of Body Connection (SBC), Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ), and Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scales (DASS-21), will be administered at baseline, post-intervention, and at an 8-week follow-up.

Data Analysis:

Data will be analysed using the intention-to-treat principle with repeated measures ANOVA to examine intervention effects.

Clinical Implication:

This study aims to inform evidence-based interventions by integrating cognitive and embodied approaches to trauma, enhancing emotion regulation in subclinical populations and mitigating the risk of progression to clinical disorders.