The Effects of Nurses’ Practicing of the HeartTouch Technique on Perceived Stress, Spiritual Well-Being, and Hardiness

PURPOSE: To test the effects of nurses' practicing of the HeartTouch technique (internal method of changing thoughts and feelings) on their perceived stress, hardiness, and spiritual well-being. METHOD: Experimental (n = 58) and comparison (n = 40) groups received an education session discussing the effects of thoughts and feelings on stress and health, with the experimental group also learning HeartTouch and practicing it for 1 month. FINDINGS: ANCOVA produced no statistically significant between-group differences. Effect sizes ranged from .14 to .35, indicating practical significance, suggesting that nurses who practiced HeartTouch likely noticed a greater improvement in outcome variables than nurses who did not practice HeartTouch. In the experimental group, statistically significant within-group differences were seen in all variables, with effect sizes ranging from .25 to .89. In the comparison group, statistically significant within-group differences were seen in two variables. IMPLICATIONS: Learning about the power of thoughts and feelings and using HeartTouch to change them can reduce stress and increase hardiness and spiritual well-being.