Brief guided digital mindfulness and related interventions (e.g., equanimity, compassion, appreciative joy, etc.) represent a promising approach for supporting between session strengthening, implementation, and maintenance of therapeutic skills. They may support clients in identifying maladaptive habits and instead strengthening adaptive processes that enhance emotion regulation outside of face-to-face therapy meetings. Support from brief digital interventions not only increases accessibility but may offer Just-In-Time Interventions to support attainment of treatment goals and prevent relapse. This training offers support to clinicians with implementation of digital mindfulness interventions for anxiety and related disorders between individual and group sessions. The focus will be on implementing digital applications to support between session assessment and application of mindfulness-based and related practices (e.g., the boundless state practices). Focus will include demonstration of use of the Smartphone Ecological Momentary Assessment (SEMA3) application (O'Brien et al., 2024), using a case example, as well as apps specific to Mindfulness- and Compassion-Based Programs (MBPs). Responses to previously submitted questions about implementing SEMA3 will also be provided. Registrants will receive a link to submit questions up to 2 weeks before this event.
CE Learning Objectives
Following this presentation, participants will be able to:
- 1. Describe one way SEMA3 can be used to support between session application of mindfulness ecological momentary interventions (MEMIs) for an anxiety disorder.
- 2. Describe two practical strategies for integrating brief smartphone-based mindfulness exercises into routine clinical care to reinforce therapeutic skill use between sessions.
References
Creswell JD, Goldberg SB. The meditation app revolution. Am Psychol. 2025 Aug 7:10.1037/amp0001576. doi: 10.1037/amp0001576. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 40773333; PMCID: PMC12333550.
O'Brien, S. T., Dozo, N., Hinton, J. D., Moeck, E. K., Susanto, R., Jayaputera, G. T., ... & Koval, P. (2024). SEMA3: A free smartphone platform for daily life surveys. Behavior Research Methods, 56(7), 7691-7706.
Zainal, N. H., Liu, X., Leong, U., Yan, X., & Chakraborty, B. (2025). Bridging innovation and equity: Advancing public health through just-in-time adaptive interventions (JITAIs). Annual Review of Public Health, 46(1), 46-68. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-publhealth-071723-103909
Zainal, N. H., & Newman, M. G. (2023). A randomized controlled trial of a 14-day mindfulness ecological momentary intervention (MEMI) for generalized anxiety disorder. European Psychiatry, 66(1), e12. https://doi.org/10.1192/j.eurpsy.2023.2
Zainal, N. H., Tan, H. H., Hong, R. Y., & Newman, M. G. (2025). Prescriptive predictors of mindfulness ecological momentary intervention for social anxiety disorder: Machine learning analysis of randomized controlled trial data. JMIR Mental Health, 12, e67210. https://doi.org/10.2196/67210
About Presenter
Hani Zainal , Ph.D. is a Presidential Young Professor and Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychology at the National University of Singapore (NUS), where she directs the Optimizing Wellness (OWL) Lab. Her research focuses on digital mental health interventions, mindfulness ecological momentary interventions (MEMIs), anxiety and depressive disorders, precision mental health, and machine learning approaches to psychotherapy research. Hani has authored peer-reviewed publications in journals such as Psychological Medicine, JAMA Psychiatry, Clinical Psychology Review, Journal of Anxiety Disorders, and JMIR Mental Health, and has led multiple randomized controlled trials examining smartphone-based interventions for anxiety and depression.
Chris Molnar, Ph.D., a licensed psychologist and clinical investigator, founded Mindful Exposure Therapy for Anxiety and Psychological Wellness Center (META Center) in 2007. She completed doctoral training at the Pennsylvania State University and post-doctoral fellowship training in traumatic stress, neuroscience, and psycho-physiology at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC). She is an expert in the assessment and treatment of anxiety, OCD, PTSD, emotional, and stress-related conditions using evidence-based practices. Through a co-sponsorship between META Center & PBTA she leads one of the handful of professional MBCT Teacher Training Organizations in the USA and virtually offering Continuing Professional Development. This includes the week-long professional CE retreat workshop for professionals seeking foundational training to develop competence teaching MBCT. She also teaches both Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) and Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) in individual and group psychotherapy formats. She has developed adaptations for highly distressed clients, using Relational Mindfulness Practices (RMPs), to meet the needs of clients who have difficulty initially with the traditional 8-week MBSR & MBCT programs and elements. At META Center, she offers integrative interventions grounded in findings about the brain, emotion, and learning to facilitate mental and behavioral habit change, even in the face of severe distress. Before founding META Center, she served as a clinical investigator and therapist supported by grants from the National Institute of Health and other agencies. She is also on the editorial board of Behavior Therapy and serves the public in many ways, through professional presentations, workshops, publications, and affiliations.
Target Audience
This presentation is intended for licensed mental health professionals and advanced graduate student trainees seeking licensure. The instructional level of this presentation is INTERMEDIATE.
Continuing Education
- Philadelphia Behavior Therapy Association is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. Philadelphia Behavior Therapy Association maintains responsibility for this program and its content.
- Philadelphia Behavior Therapy Association is also approved by the NY State Education Department to offer psychology continuing education
- This program provides one (1) CE credit
- PBTA is also an authorized provider of CE credits for Professional Counselors, Marriage and Family Therapists, and Clinical Social Workers licensed in the state of Pennsylvania. Non-Psychologist Licensees outside of PA & practitioners outside of the USA please confirm eligibility with your specific licensing board.
- Full attendance with video display is required to obtain CE credit for this program. APA guidelines do not permit PBTA to issue partial CE credits. No refunds are provided for CE programs. No exceptions allowed.
- All events are Eastern Time Zone
- Contact Claire, PBTA's CE assistant if you need any learning accommodations no later than one week before event. Email Claire at pbtacontinuingedassistant@gmail.com
