Improv Comedy to Reduce Anxiety and Improve Mental Well-Being in Young Chinese Adults in Hong Kong

Starting soon · Not applicable

Conditions studied: Anxiety, Mental Health

In brief

The goal of this clinical trial is to learn if improv comedy helps reduce anxiety symptoms and improve mental well-being in Chinese young adults in Hong Kong. The main questions it aims to answer are: 1. Does improv comedy reduce anxiety symptoms? 2. Does improv comedy improve mental well-being? Researchers will compare participants who join the improv comedy workshops to participants who are placed on a waiting list to receive the workshops later, to see if improv comedy reduces anxiety and improves mental well-being. Participants will: 1. Attend weekly three-hour improv comedy workshops for 4 consecutive weeks 2. Complete four assessments and brief reflections during or around the workshop sessions 3. Take part in up to two individual interviews (optional)

Key facts

Study ID

NCT07737821

Run by

The University of Hong Kong

People needed

150

Starts

2026-08-15

Expected to finish

2028-08-31

Last updated by the study team

2026-07-30

Who can join

Age: 18 and older, up to 29. Sex: any. Healthy volunteers: not accepted.

You may qualify if…

• Ethnic Chinese, fluent in spoken Mandarin and able to read Chinese
• Never married and without children
• No current or past diagnosis of any mental disorder (e.g. anxiety disorders, depressive disorders, bipolar disorder, psychotic disorders)
• Mild to moderate anxiety symptoms (defined as a GAD-7 total score between 5 and 14)
• No prior experience of formal performance training in drama
• Availability to attend at least 3 out of 4 weekly sessions over the 4-week intervention period upon enrolment

You may not qualify if…

• Unstable or severe chronic physical illness that would contraindicate participation in group activities or light-to-moderate physical movement (e.g., uncontrolled hypertension, severe asthma, acute cardiovascular events within the past 6 months)
• Moderately severe to severe depression symptoms (defined as a PHQ-9 total score greater than 14)
• Suicidal ideation (defined as a score greater than 0 on item 9 of the PHQ-9)
• Potential risky drinking behavior (defined as AUDIT-C total score greater than 4)

Where it is running

• Centre on Behavioral Health, The University of Hong Kong — Hong Kong, Hong Kong

Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov

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