Mindfulness最新文献

This paper offers a commentary on Oman’s article, “Mindfulness for Global Public Health: Critical Analysis and Agenda.” We focus on engaging and extending some of Oman’s questions and ideas about connections between mindfulness and intercultural and interreligious competence, and we make applications to the personal and professional formation of helping professionals (e.g., mental health professionals, clergy). Mindfulness is considered in relation to a dialectical emphasis on both intercultural (or diversity) competence and humility with connections to the cultural humility literature. This leads us to question whether mindfulness could be framed as a virtue, a capacity and practice that facilitates virtues (e.g., humility), or both. A brief summary of related research on virtues, spiritual practices, and intercultural competence is offered to frame some key future research questions. Like some other commentary articles in this series, we engage aspects of religious diversity in relation to mindfulness-based practices. But our unique contribution includes the application of a specific developmental model of interreligious competence to the use of mindfulness by helping professionals. We illustrate differing interreligious orientations toward mindfulness and the potential impact of each orientation on professional practice. The final section offers some contextualization of these interreligious orientations within religious minority communities using Jewish communities as an example by further probing of one of Oman’s sources on Jewish mindfulness.

Objectives

Previous research has shown the capacity for mindfulness to be strongly associated with psychological well-being, that components of mindfulness show significant growth through young adulthood, and that this developing, malleable capacity is vital as individuals learn to deal appropriately with negative thoughts and unwelcome emotions. Smartphones, typically used in an automatic or experientially avoidant way, can undermine this development, leading to a decreased capacity for mindfulness. The purpose of these studies were to examine the extent to which smartphone use is negatively associated with young adults’ mindfulness and the degree to which increased cognitive and behavioral involvement with smartphones may exacerbate this relation using a newly developed conceptual model.

Method

Study 1 was conducted using self-report measures of mindfulness among a cross-sectional sample of university students aged 18–20 years (n = 668). Study 2 augmented Study 1 using objective measures of smartphone screen time and the cognitive regulatory components of mindfulness in a planned missingness design.

Results

Results indicate smartphone involvement (a compulsive pattern of use and cognitive preoccupation with one’s smartphone) to be significantly associated with lower trait mindfulness. Additionally, exploratory analysis of smartphone involvement as a mediator of the effect of smartphone use on mindfulness demonstrated a significant estimated indirect effect.

Conclusion

These results provide preliminary empirical support for the newly proposed conceptual model which posits associations between mindfulness and the use of smartphones in a cognitively and behaviorally involved way.

Preregistration

This study is not preregistered.

Objectives

Rumination, a risk factor for the development of psychopathology that often emerges during adolescence, has been successfully targeted in mindfulness interventions; however, the mechanism is unclear. Acquiring mindfulness skills may help reduce repetitive ruminative thinking and in turn alleviate negative emotions. The goal of the present study was to test whether changes in trait mindfulness accounted for the reductions in rumination following a brief mindfulness intervention.

Method

Ruminative adolescents (n = 152; 59% girls, 18% racial/ethnic minority, mean age = 13.72, SD = 0.89) were randomly assigned to use a mobile app 3 times per day for 3 weeks that delivered brief mindfulness exercises or a mood monitoring only control. They completed questionnaires to assess rumination, mindfulness, and depression at baseline, post-intervention and follow-up at 6 weeks, 12 weeks, and 6 months post-intervention.

Results

We ran a parallel causal mediation model with bootstrapping to examine whether changes in facets of mindfulness (Nonjudgment, Nonreactivity, Describe, Awareness, Observe) mediated the effect of treatment group on change in rumination. A significant indirect effect of Treatment Group on Rumination emerged through Nonjudgment. Next, we ran a serial mediation model predicting depressive symptoms during the follow-up period (12 weeks and 6 months post-intervention) from Treatment Group through Nonjudgment (immediate post-intervention) and rumination (at 6 weeks post-intervention). Results from this model were significant.

Conclusions

Our findings suggest that a brief mindfulness intervention increases nonjudgmental awareness, thereby reducing rumination and subsequent depressive symptoms. Understanding these mechanisms may help tailor interventions for at-risk youth.

Preregistration

This study was registered with Clinicaltrials.gov (Identifier NCT03900416).

Objectives

Repetitive negative thinking (RNT) is a problematic thinking style that is related to multiple mental disorders. Detached mindfulness is a technique of metacognitive therapy that aims to reduce RNT. Our study set out to investigate the immediate effects of detached mindfulness in daily life.

Methods

Participants with elevated trait RNT (n = 50) were prompted to engage in detached mindfulness exercises three times a day for 5 consecutive days. Immediate effects on RNT and affect were assessed 15 and 30 min after each exercise using experience sampling methodology. We compared the effects of this exercise phase to (1) a 5-day non-exercise baseline phase and (2) a different group of participants that engaged in an active control exercise (n = 50).

Results

Results of Bayesian multilevel models showed that, across groups, improvements in RNT, negative affect, and positive affect were stronger during the exercise phase than during the non-exercise baseline phase (RNT after 15 min: b = -0.26, 95% CI = [-0.38, -0.14]). However, the two exercise groups did not differ in these improvements (RNT after 15 min: b = 0.02, 95% CI = [-0.22, 0.27]). Thus, the detached mindfulness and the active control exercises resulted in similar effects on RNT and affect in daily life.

Conclusions

Results of this study imply that there was no additional benefit of having participants observe their thoughts detached and non-judgmentally, compared to excluding these assumed mechanisms of action as done for the active control group. We discuss possible reasons for the non-difference between the groups.

Preregistration

This study was preregistered at https://osf.io/rze64.

The primary objective of this study is to shed light on the role and significance of freedom from remorse (avipratisāra/avippaṭisāra) in the cultivation of Buddhist concentration (samādhi) meditation. The study delves into the progression from avipratisāra/avippaṭisāra to samādhi, examining how moral discipline influences an individual’s conscience and, consequently, meditation. We commence by examining the well-established path of cultivation leading toward samādhi. A comprehensive study was undertaken to understand the term avipratisāra/avippaṭisāra, its significance for Buddhist meditation, the context in which it originated, and the various English translations that have been provided for it. Furthermore, a comparison is made between avipratisāra/avippaṭisāra and a seemingly synonymous term, kaukṛtya/kukkucca, with areas being sought where one or the other tends to be (or is exclusively) used within the discourse about Buddhist ethics and meditation. From various Buddhist scriptures, it is suggested that a morally disciplined individual typically progresses through a series of states, starting with freedom from remorse and potentially leading to concentration (samādhi). Avipratisāra/avippaṭisāra is pivotal in fostering positive meditative states, serving as a catalyst that propels individuals from negative emotions to wholesome ones on the Buddhist path. By contrast, both vipratisāra/vippaṭisāra and kaukṛtya/kukkucca are identified as basically synonymous words for disturbing emotions with somewhat different contexts of use, the elimination of such emotions being necessary if individuals are to progress on their spiritual journey. Avipratisāra/avippaṭisāra plays a crucial intermediary role bridging Buddhist ethics and meditation. Moral discipline and the subsequent understanding and confession of any personal misconduct are integral to fostering freedom from remorse. Such freedom not only paves the way to deeper meditation but also fortifies one’s confidence in Buddhist teachings, and so provides a foundation for true spiritual progress.

Buddhist recovery manuals, a genre that has emerged in the last 30 years, aim to use Buddhist ideas and practices to address the challenges of addiction. These books draw on classical Buddhist thought and Twelve-Step programs such as Alcoholics Anonymous. Both of these influences share the framework of a step-wise path of transformation from a state of maladaptive compulsion to a state of freedom. This article analyzes the paths laid out by these Buddhist recovery manuals and compares them to classical Buddhist and Twelve-Step paths. This comparison demonstrates that Buddhist recovery manuals creatively draw on classical Buddhism and Twelve-Step but also differ from them in important ways as they re-imagine a path from addiction to recovery. This article documents the growing genre of Buddhist recovery manuals, thus expanding our understanding of Anglophone Buddhism and providing substance abuse professionals with a knowledge of the Buddhist recovery landscape. The article also argues that Buddhist recovery manuals differ from classical Buddhism by emphasizing meditation at the beginning of the path, rather than placing it after training in giving and ethical discipline.

Objectives

Practitioners in contemplative traditions commonly report experiencing an awareness that is distinct from sensory objects, thoughts, and emotions (“awareness itself”). They also report experiences of a void or underlying silence that is closely associated with this awareness. Subjects who carry out the Headless Way exercises frequently report an experience of emptiness or void at the same time as other contents (void-like experiences). The goals of this study were to (1) assess the reliability of these methods in eliciting the recognition of awareness and void-like experiences in participants who had no prior exposure to these techniques, (2) investigate the prevalence of these experiences in these tasks, and (3) to differentiate these experiences from closely related and potential precursor experiences.

Method

Twenty adults participated in in-depth individual interviews in which they were guided through the Headless Way exercises. A thematic analysis was conducted on the interview transcripts.

Results

Twelve of the participants reported a void-like experience, and five participants reported an experience of awareness itself. These experiences were respectively categorized as subsets of the more general categories of perceptual absences and the sense of not being person-like. Another novel finding was the real-time reports of awareness and void-like experiences during the exercises.

Conclusions

Our findings provide preliminary evidence that the Headless Way exercises can effectively induce experiences of emptiness and awareness in participants without prior experience. The findings suggest that such experiences can be elicited outside of a traditional meditation context, including in non-meditators. Furthermore, the experience of not being person-like and of perceptual absences may be precursors and more general forms of recognizing awareness itself and the void-like nature of the mind.

Preregistration

This study is not preregistered.

Objectives

Psychological distress is common among university students globally. A culturally relevant internet-based mindfulness intervention could be a potential solution for addressing students’ distress in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), including Indonesia. However, internet-based mindfulness interventions are new in Indonesia. In this study, we evaluated the feasibility, acceptability, and mental health outcomes of a counsellor-guided, culturally adapted, internet-delivered mindfulness intervention for Indonesian university students experiencing psychological distress.

Method

This open pilot trial used a single-arm pre-post-test design. Indonesian university students with elevated distress (n = 40) enrolled in a 4-week counsellor-guided internet-delivered mindfulness intervention. Participants completed the Indonesian adaptation of the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS-21) at screening, baseline, and post-treatment. They also completed the Indonesian version of Kessler’s Psychological Distress Scale (K-10) prior to each lesson, Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ) and Indonesian Well-Being Scale (IWBS) at baseline and post-treatment, and questionnaires to evaluate the feasibility, acceptability, and treatment satisfaction.

Results

Results showed the feasibility and acceptability of our guided culturally adapted Indonesian internet-delivered mindfulness intervention, with good completion rates (70%). We also found large and significant improvements in distress, mindfulness, and well-being (Hedges’ g = 0.85–1.68) from pre- to post-treatment. Participants reported that the program was satisfactory.

Conclusions

This study suggested that a counsellor-guided culturally adapted internet-based mindfulness intervention was feasible, acceptable, and associated with improvements in psychological distress, well-being, and mindfulness among university students in Indonesia. A randomized controlled trial with follow-up is needed to evaluate the intervention’s effectiveness.

Preregistration

This trial was preregistered on the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trial Registry (ACTRN12620000135910).

Objectives

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of a school-based mindfulness programme (SBMP), “Paws b”, on empathy and prosocial behaviour among children aged 7 to 10 years in a school setting.

Method

This multi-informant design, randomised controlled trial compared an intervention group to a wait-list control group, involving 133 children aged 7- to 10 years from 10 classrooms. Outcome measures were taken at pre-intervention, post-intervention, and 3-month follow-up and included self-reports of mindfulness and empathy, a sharing task, teacher and peer reports of prosocial behaviours, and sociometry measures.

Results

Children in the intervention group were voted as significantly more (a) prosocial by teachers F(1, 127) = 7.35, p = 0.008, η² = 0.055, (b) helpful by peers, F(1, 127) = 9.369, p < 0.003, η² = 0.069, (c) popular by peers, F(1, 127) = 4.90, p = 0.028, η² = 0.037, and (d) showed more reciprocal relationships, t(8) = 2.518, p = 0.036, compared to the wait-list control group. The intervention did not have an effect on mindfulness scores, empathy scores (affective, cognitive, or intention to comfort), or sharing task scores.

Conclusions

Findings suggest that, for 7–10-year-olds, the SBMP, Paws b, delivered by a mindfulness teacher, can increase some aspects of prosociality, as judged by peers and teachers, but has no effect on self-assessed empathy.

Preregistration

This study was preregistered on the Open Science Framework (https://osf.io/vm6tp/) on 31.10.2022.

Objectives

This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of the Intervention program of Mindfulness and Compassion against COVID-19 (IMACOCO), an online mindfulness-based intervention (MBI), in enhancing mindfulness, mental health, well-being, and productivity among working individuals during the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, the study examined the program’s efficacy in individuals directly impacted by the pandemic through a randomized controlled trial and pre-post program comparisons.

Method

Three hundred working adults, including office workers, educators, and medical welfare workers, were randomly allocated to the intervention or waiting control group. An 8-week online MBI program, with pre-, interim (4 weeks), and post-program (8 weeks) evaluations, was conducted via the Internet; standardized questionnaires were used to assess mindfulness, psychological distress, life satisfaction, and productivity. After the initial 8-week program, the waiting control group participated in the same program and evaluation surveys for pre-post comparisons.

Results

There were 99 participants in the intervention group and 111 in the control group. Significant increases in mindfulness (FFMQ) and life satisfaction (SWLS) as well as decrease in psychological distress (GHQ-12) were observed primarily in the intervention group (Cohen’s d = 0.18–0.52). Furthermore, the pre-post comparisons with 168 participants demonstrated significant improvements in productivity (Cohen’s d = 0.26), and stratified analysis revealed that participants affected by COVID-19 showed more pronounced benefits in mindfulness and life satisfaction than those who were unaffected.

Conclusions

Implementing an online MBI program (IMACOCO) can be a potent strategy to reduce mental stress and enhance overall well-being and resilience, in a disaster-prone world.

Preregistration

This study is not preregistered.