Pickering, Dylan A. (University of Wollongong, Australia)
Investigating the mechanisms of mindfulness: nonattachment and repetitive negative thinking
The efficacy of mindfulness meditation-based interventions for reducing psychological distress and symptoms is well documented. Less in known, however, about the mechanisms through which mindfulness achieves its salutary outcomes. The purpose of this research was to investigate an insight-based model of mindfulness involving a mechanistic pathway of nonattachment and repetitive negative thinking (RNT). The investigation consisted of two studies. Study 1 utilised cross-sectional data from 153 undergraduate psychology students. Mediation analyses revealed that mindfulness influenced RNT via nonattachment, and nonattachment influenced psychological distress through RNT. Furthermore, a path analysis demonstrated good overall fit of the model to the sample data. These findings support the theory that decreased habitual reactions of attachment or aversion to cognitions, emotions, or sensations, mitigates elaborative RNT, which in turn reduces psychological symptoms. Study 2 was a controlled quasi-experimental trial of an eight-week Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) programme (N = 67). Results showed that participants completing MBSR training demonstrated significant improvements in mindfulness, nonattachment, rumination, worry, and psychological distress. Mediation analyses of change scores supported the mechanistic role of RNT but not nonattachment in the therapeutic effects of mindfulness. Accordingly, it is suggested that the change mechanisms associated with mindfulness therapies may be different from the psychological processes underlying the positive outcomes of trait mindfulness (i.e. study 1). Implications for theory and clinical practice along with recommendations for future research are discussed.
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Investigating the mechanisms of mindfulness: nonattachment and repetitive negative thinking
The efficacy of mindfulness meditation-based interventions for reducing psychological distress and symptoms is well documented. Less in known, however, about the mechanisms through which mindfulness achieves its salutary outcomes. The purpose of this research was to investigate an insight-based model of mindfulness involving a mechanistic pathway of nonattachment and repetitive negative thinking (RNT). The investigation consisted of two studies. Study 1 utilised cross-sectional data from 153 undergraduate psychology students. Mediation analyses revealed that mindfulness influenced RNT via nonattachment, and nonattachment influenced psychological distress through RNT. Furthermore, a path analysis demonstrated good overall fit of the model to the sample data. These findings support the theory that decreased habitual reactions of attachment or aversion to cognitions, emotions, or sensations, mitigates elaborative RNT, which in turn reduces psychological symptoms. Study 2 was a controlled quasi-experimental trial of an eight-week Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) programme (N = 67). Results showed that participants completing MBSR training demonstrated significant improvements in mindfulness, nonattachment, rumination, worry, and psychological distress. Mediation analyses of change scores supported the mechanistic role of RNT but not nonattachment in the therapeutic effects of mindfulness. Accordingly, it is suggested that the change mechanisms associated with mindfulness therapies may be different from the psychological processes underlying the positive outcomes of trait mindfulness (i.e. study 1). Implications for theory and clinical practice along with recommendations for future research are discussed.
Download Presentation