The Tapping Evidence Base
Stress & Cortisol · Multiple Conditions

Reducing Stress in Youth: A Pilot-Study on the Effects of a University-Based Intervention Program for University Students in Pune, India

de Wit, E. E., Bunders-Aelen, J. G. F., Regeer, B. J. · Journal of Educational and Developmental Psychology · 2016

Outcome study👥 33 participantsPreliminary✓ Source-checked📍 India
In plain English. Thirty-three Indian university students went through a month of stress-reduction sessions mixing tapping with theatre, dance, poetry, and cognitive techniques. Their stress scores dropped by the end of the program, and students specifically credited poetry, dance, and tapping as the parts that helped most. Because EFT was only one piece of a bundled program, this can't isolate tapping's effect on its own.

What they found

33
people took part

Average stress scores decreased significantly after a multi-component program including EFT, poetry, dance, and REBT (p = 0.044), though the reduction was not significant at eight-month follow-up.

How the study worked

Who took partuniversity students aged 18-22 in Pune, India (n=33)
What they didParticipants received tapping and were measured before and after, without a separate comparison group.
Measured withPerceived Stress Scale (PSS)

💡 Where this could help

If findings like these hold up in larger trials, the promise is simple: a low-cost, self-administered tool that could reach people struggling with stress & cortisol who can't easily access traditional care — at home, between appointments, or where there aren't enough clinicians to go around.

🔬 What to study next

The natural next step: a head-to-head trial against an established treatment like CBT, and a larger sample to confirm the effect.

The full record

DesignOutcome study
Participants33 people
Populationuniversity students aged 18-22 in Pune, India
Outcome measuresPerceived Stress Scale (PSS)
JournalJournal of Educational and Developmental Psychology
Year2016
CountryIndia
LanguageEnglish
MethodEFT / tapping
Publication typeStudy / trial
Verification✓ Confirmed against the primary source

Read the original study →

Cite this study

APA

de Wit, E. E., Bunders-Aelen, J. G. F., & Regeer, B. J. (2016). Reducing Stress in Youth: A Pilot-Study on the Effects of a University-Based Intervention Program for University Students in Pune, India. Journal of Educational and Developmental Psychology. https://doi.org/10.5539/jedp.v6n2p53

This record is part of the Tapping Evidence Base — an openly-sourced, fully-referenced directory of the research on EFT/tapping. Explore more studies on Stress & Cortisol

Share this study

A ready-made graphic — right-click or long-press to save the image.

Show shareable card
THE TAPPING EVIDENCE BASE Stress & Cortisol 33 participants WHAT THEY FOUND Average stress scores decreasedsignificantly after a multi-componentprogram including EFT, poetry, dance, and… Outcome study · 33 participants de Wit · 2016 · evidence.thetappingsolution.com