UC Berkeley

Background: While contemplative and positive psychology practices confer mental health benefits, their adoption faces barriers, including time and habit formation. Micropractice—tiny training sessions for well-being—shows promise in addressing time constraints, but their effects may hinge on consistent practice. This study tested a 15-minute, self-guided, online, single-session habit formation intervention designed to promote self-compassionate touch practice.Methods: A national U.S. sample of 491 adults recruited via social media were randomly assigned to one of two self-guided, online, single-session interventions: (1) a 3-5 minute self-compassionate touch intervention supplemented with 15 minutes of instruction on habit formation tools (SCT+HABITS) or (2) the self-compassionate touch intervention alone (SCT). All were instructed to practice self-compassionate touch for 20 seconds/day until their 6-month follow-up (6FU). Participants completed assessments at baseline, 3 months (3FU), and 6FU.Results: In pre-registered analyses, SCT+HABITS led to greater increases in practice frequency and practice automaticity from baseline to 3FU and 6FU, relative to SCT. From baseline to 3FU, SCT+HABITS showed greater increases in self-compassion automaticity, relative to SCT. From baseline to 6FU, SCT+HABITS conferred greater increases in self-compassion and selfcompassion automaticity, along with reductions in psychopathology, relative to SCT. Increases in practice automaticity from baseline to 3FU mediated the effects of SCT+HABITS, relative to SCT, on baseline-to-6FU improvements in self-compassion, self-compassion automaticity, and reductions in psychopathology. Increases in practice automaticity explained 35% to 45% of these improvements in outcomes. There was an indirect effect of SCT+HABITS on baseline-to-6FU stress reduction via baseline-to-3FU increases in practice automaticity, but the total effect on stress was not significant. Both interventions demonstrated high acceptability. The effects of SCT+HABITS relative to SCT did not differ based on racialized identity.Conclusions: Findings highlight the role of habit formation in promoting positive outcomes of self-compassionate touch, and perhaps contemplative and positive psychology practices more broadly. The scalability, low cost, and adaptability of SCT+HABITS present a promising model for advancing efficient, effective, and user-friendly well-being interventions. While not a replacement for professional care, SCT+HABITS offers an accessible path to improving self-compassion and emotional well-being.