Research and evidence
The original study that informed CalmStack, and clear limits on what that study can show.
The original undergraduate dissertation
Evaluating a digital micro-intervention for real-time emotion regulation: A within-person EMA study is an unpublished undergraduate dissertation by C. Thompson, completed at Nottingham Trent University in 2026.
What the study found
The study explored the feasibility and acceptability of a brief combined intervention in everyday life. Eleven UK adults provided 941 repeated observations across 14 days. Participants reported using the intervention, and paired self-reported distress ratings were often lower immediately afterwards.
These findings are signals about feasibility and acceptability. They are not proof that CalmStack causes an outcome.
What it cannot establish
The study was small, within-person and did not use a randomised control group. It assessed combined components, so it cannot isolate which element mattered. Self-monitoring, natural fluctuation and regression to the mean are also possible explanations.
It cannot establish causation, clinical effectiveness, diagnosis or that findings generalise to other people or settings.
How the research informed CalmStack
The study informed CalmStack’s interest in short learning, voluntary Check-ins, brief practice and reflection in everyday moments. Product design is not treated as efficacy evidence.
What your Check-ins can and cannot tell you · How CalmStack connects learning and practice