2026 Publications (Vol. 21)
The Effect of a Blue Mind Intervention on College Student Well-Being/em>
E. Shannon
L. Goodman-Riley
Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Florida Southern College
Being around water can make people happier by inducing a semi-meditative state called the “Blue Mind” (Nichols, 2014). The current purpose was to determine if watching water videos paired with music or natural water sounds improves well-being. In the first study (N = 39), experimental participants viewed short videos of moving water (crashing beach waves, babbling brook, and a waterfall) for two weeks. Videos were paired with either water inspired classical music or natural water sounds. Unlike controls who did not watch the videos, both treatment groups experienced significant increases in grit and happiness, and the natural sounds condition also experienced increases in life satisfaction. In the second study (N = 71), a one-session intervention and a live water treatment condition (sitting next to a fountain) were introduced. Participants in all treatment conditions experienced significant increases in happiness and decreases in revenge and avoidance transgressions. Thus, both experiments reveal that “Blue Mind” interventions that include water scenes paired with either music or natural sounds can improve the well-being of college students. Key words: positive psychology, well-being, undergraduate, Blue Mind, well-being intervention
January 2025; Volume 21
E. Shannon
L. Goodman-Riley
Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Florida Southern College
Being around water can make people happier by inducing a semi-meditative state called the “Blue Mind” (Nichols, 2014). The current purpose was to determine if watching water videos paired with music or natural water sounds improves well-being. In the first study (N = 39), experimental participants viewed short videos of moving water (crashing beach waves, babbling brook, and a waterfall) for two weeks. Videos were paired with either water inspired classical music or natural water sounds. Unlike controls who did not watch the videos, both treatment groups experienced significant increases in grit and happiness, and the natural sounds condition also experienced increases in life satisfaction. In the second study (N = 71), a one-session intervention and a live water treatment condition (sitting next to a fountain) were introduced. Participants in all treatment conditions experienced significant increases in happiness and decreases in revenge and avoidance transgressions. Thus, both experiments reveal that “Blue Mind” interventions that include water scenes paired with either music or natural sounds can improve the well-being of college students. Key words: positive psychology, well-being, undergraduate, Blue Mind, well-being intervention
January 2025; Volume 21
| The Effect of Blue Mind Intervention on College Student Well-Being |