Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry
March 4, 2014
Graham Meadows, Frances Shawyer, Joanne Enticott et al.
66 citations
Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) plus active monitoring reduced the average number of days with major depression over two years to 65, compared to 112 for active monitoring alone. Proportionally fewer MBCT participants experienced relapse in both the first and second year (odds ratio 0.45). The difference in time to first depressive episode was not statistically significant, though trends favored MBCT. MBCT was most effective for people receiving specialist care and for those taking antidepressant or mood stabilizer medication. The findings support MBCT's effectiveness in routine practice, with effects less strong than in prior efficacy studies but still appreciable.
Frontiers in Psychology
January 1, 2024
Sarah E B Francis, Frances Shawyer, Bruno Cayoun et al.
20 citations
Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) and mindfulness-integrated cognitive behavior therapy (MiCBT) differ in their origins, structure, and evidence. MBCT was developed to prevent depressive relapse and has strong support from systematic reviews and meta-analyses, earning endorsement in clinical guidelines, but its single-disorder focus may limit its use in diverse health settings. MiCBT was designed for transdiagnostic applications, incorporating exposure procedures and compassion training to reduce avoidance, and shows promising early evidence, though it lacks inclusion in clinical guidelines. More high-quality randomized controlled trials and systematic reviews are needed for MiCBT, while MBCT requires greater attention to dissemination and implementation research.
Frontiers in Psychology
January 1, 2025
Andrew Boxer, Frances Shawyer, Ian Coghlan et al.
6 citations
People who attended a 30-day Lam Rim meditation retreat and had exposure to both traditional Buddhism and Western mindfulness described differences between the two approaches. They found the Western definition of mindfulness unclear compared to specific Buddhist understandings. Western applications focused narrowly on health and productivity, while traditional Buddhism offered a broader life philosophy. Participants identified Buddhist concepts—impermanence, mind science, the Four Noble Truths, emptiness, dependent arising, and compassion—as potentially helpful for enriching Western mindfulness-based interventions. Some concepts, like compassion, already have secular frameworks, but further integration of deeper Buddhist perspectives could promote holistic mental health within a non-religious framework.
Mindfulness
March 24, 2026
Andrew Boxer, Frances Shawyer, Ian Coghlan et al.
A scoping review of 16 studies found that Western psychology has made limited use of the Buddhist mental factor framework, which classifies moment-to-moment mental states and their antidotes. Although mindfulness and compassion have been widely adopted, the broader framework remains underexplored. The reviewed studies fell into three categories: conceptual and theoretical analyses (10), therapeutic applications (2), and computational or AI modeling (4). None applied the full framework in a Western psychology context, but findings suggested compatibility with AI systems. Tibetan Buddhist perspectives were underrepresented. The authors conclude that future research could develop a secularized understanding of mental factors and test clinical applications.
BMC Psychiatry
January 6, 2020
Sarah Frances, Frances Shawyer, Bruno Cayoun et al.
A transdiagnostic treatment called mindfulness-integrated cognitive behavior therapy (MiCBT) combines cognitive behavioral techniques with mindfulness meditation from the Vipassana tradition, focusing on body scanning to develop interoceptive awareness and equanimity. This randomized controlled trial will test whether group MiCBT reduces depression and anxiety symptoms in 120 adults with high psychological distress (K10 score of 20 or more) recruited from primary care. Participants will be assigned to an 8-week MiCBT program or a wait-list control group, with outcomes measured using the DASS-21 and K10. The study aims to determine if MiCBT offers a comprehensive therapeutic system applicable across diagnostic groups.