Worldwide stress: different problems, similar solutions? Cultural adaptation and evaluation of a standardized stress...

Chronic stress is an important risk factor for morbidity and premature mortality at the individual and societal level.

Our aim was to describe the process of adapting and testing the effectiveness of a structured stress management skills training program in a culture different from the one in which it was first developed.

We translated an internationally used standardized behavioral intervention program into Hungarian and adapted it for use in a Hungarian cultural setting. We evaluated the changes in stress level and stress-related symptom scores among distressed voluntary participants on the basis of self-reported questionnaires completed before, immediately after, and 4 to 6 months after the 12-h intervention. The following measures were included: PSS-10, STAI-T, BDI-S, PHQ-15, and WBI-5. For statistical analyses, paired sample t test and Cohen's d value for effect size were used.

In a sample of 107 distressed individuals, after the training, stress level, psychological and somatic symptoms decreased and well-being increased (p < 0.0001). These positive changes were maintained at follow-up in a subsample of 42 persons tested 4-6 months later.

These results confirm the long-term positive effects of this standardized behavioral intervention in a different cultural context and in real-world settings, which encourages further dissemination of the program in various community settings.