Mindfulness and Symptoms of Depression and Anxiety in the General Population: The Mediating Roles of Worry, Rumination, Reappraisal and Suppression
Frontiers in Psychology March 8, 2019 F. Parmentier, M. García-Toro, J. García-Campayo et al.
Mindfulness relates to lower depression and anxiety both directly and indirectly through emotional regulation. In an international non-clinical sample of 1151 adults (meditators and non-meditators), worry, rumination, reappraisal, and suppression mediated the link between mindfulness and depression; for anxiety, suppression was not a mediator. The estimated hours of mindfulness meditation practice did not directly affect depression or anxiety but reduced them indirectly by increasing mindfulness. Worry and rumination were the strongest mediators. The findings suggest that meditation focused on reducing worry and rumination may help lower the risk of clinical depression.