HRV-based workplace consultation for managers: a randomized controlled trial on enhancing biopsychosocial awareness and reducing perceived stress

TL;DR

A workplace program using heart rate variability and diaries helped managers become more aware of how their mind, body, and environment interact, reducing stress.

Contribution

A novel workplace consultation method using HRV and diary feedback to enhance biopsychosocial awareness and reduce stress.

Findings

Managers in the intervention group showed greater awareness of mind–body interactions.

Perceived stress was significantly reduced in the intervention group.

The method supported self-regulation and behavioral change in occupational settings.

Abstract

Effective tools are needed to communicate the biopsychosocial model of health in the workplace, emphasizing the interaction between mind, body, and environment. A 24-h heart rate variability (HRV) spectrogram, combined with a diary, was used to provide individualized feedback on these interactions.

One hundred managers from a manufacturing and engineering company in southern Germany were randomized into either an intervention group (IG) or a control group (CG). The IG underwent a 24-h ECG measurement, documented daily events, and completed questionnaires. These data informed a 50-min consultation that focused on the connection among emotions, thoughts, recorded situations, and HRV. Questionnaires were repeated after 3 months. Changes in the primary outcome—awareness of biopsychosocial interactions—were analyzed using repeated-measures ANOVA.

Data from 81 participants were included in the final analysis. Participants (94% men, mean ± SD age 48 ± 8.6 years) in the IG reported significantly greater awareness of mind–body interactions (p = 0.032, η2 = 0.057) and were more likely to respond to their body’s needs (p = 0.008, η2 = 0.085). Perceived stress was significantly reduced only in the IG (p = 0.017, η2 = 0.071).

This approach, which integrates HRV visualization with diary-based reflection, proved to be a feasible and effective method for enhancing awareness of biopsychosocial processes, supporting self-regulation, promoting behavioral change, and reducing perceived stress in occupational settings.

Figures