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Journal of Health Psychology

ISSN 1461-7277, 1359-1053

22 papers in the library · 709 citations · publishing 1999-2026

Papers

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Mindfulness practices for cardiovascular disease risk reduction among people with HIV: A qualitative study of perceived feasibility and acceptability.

Journal of Health Psychology July 23, 2026 Jacklyn D Foley, Madison Davis, Julia Scheinbach et al.

Mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) support health outcomes in people with cardiovascular disease (CVD) but have not been evaluated among people with HIV (PWH) at risk for CVD. This qualitative study assessed perceived feasibility and acceptability of mindfulness among PWH to inform its inclusion in a CVD risk reduction intervention. Four focus group discussions (N = 23) were conducted;...

Development and usability testing of a mindfulness-based smoking cessation app for adults with low income: "It's helped me to not react and grab a cigarette".

Journal of Health Psychology June 26, 2026

Adults with low socioeconomic status (SES) experience profound tobacco-related health disparities. This paper describes the development of a mobile application, iQuit Mindfully 2.0, to provide accessible mindfulness training for smoking cessation for adults with low SES. In the initial usability study, adults with low SES who smoked ( N = 16) used the app for 2 weeks and provided feedback...

Relationship between self-transcendence and hopelessness in patients with lung cancer: A cross-sectional study.

Journal of Health Psychology May 11, 2026 Canan Bozkurt-Duman, Hülya Bulut, Yasemin Yildirim

This study examined the relationship between self-transcendence and hopelessness in hospitalized lung cancer patients. Conducted between February and September 2023 in a hospital in western Türkiye, the cross-sectional study included 400 patients. Data were collected using a Patient Identification Form, the Self-Transcendence Scale (STS), and the Beck Hopelessness Scale (BHS). The mean age was...

DOI: 10.1177/13591053261449648 (opens in new tab) Full text (opens in new tab) Hopelessness Lung cancer Self-transcendence Well-being

A comprehensive review of literature on the relationship between spirituality and working women's physical health and performance.

Journal of Health Psychology May 2, 2026 Arnab Basu, Nadindla Srividya

This systematic literature review (2020-2025) of 64 studies examines the associations between spiritual practices and the holistic well-being of working women. Interventions such as meditation, mindfulness, and workplace yoga are consistently linked to favorable shifts in the Mind-Body axis, characterized by lower cortisol levels and improved autonomic balance. These physiological changes track...

Gender-specific responses to mindfulness-based interventions in primary care: A systematic review of mental health and pain management outcomes.

Journal of Health Psychology April 20, 2026 A. Chandak, Nate Ewigman, Girija Mahale

Mindfulness-Based Interventions (MBIs) are widely used in primary care for pain and mental health, but gender-specific outcomes are under-researched. A systematic review was conducted using PRISMA 2020 guidelines. Studies from Scopus, Web of Science, and PubMed (1987-2023) with gender-disaggregated data were included. Elicit AI assisted in screening, data extraction, and thematic clustering....

A Mindful Compassion Care Program to reduce burnout and work-related distress among frontline nurses who cared for patients with COVID-19: A pilot study.

Journal of Health Psychology March 31, 2026 Chiara Bonetto, Simone Cheli, Luca Bodini et al.

This pilot study evaluated the feasibility and preliminary effectiveness of the Mindful Compassion Care Program (MCCP) in reducing burnout and work-related distress among frontline nurses who worked with COVID-19 patients. A non-randomized controlled design with repeated measures was adopted in a large hospital in northern Italy. Thirty-three nurses participated. The intervention group attended...

Exploring self-reported health behavior change following naturalistic psychedelic use

Journal of Health Psychology December 31, 2025 Laura C. Carvalho, Jorge Encantado, Arlen C. Moller et al.

Health-related behaviors are essential determinants of health and well-being, yet unhealthy patterns persist globally. Psychedelics may represent an innovative tool for facilitating positive behavior change. This study investigated retrospective health-related behavior changes attributed to past psychedelic experiences. An online survey was completed by 271 adults who reported on the...

DOI: 10.1177/13591053251392867 (opens in new tab) Causality physics Contemplation Health behavior Health psychology +7

A randomized, controlled trial study of the effectiveness of mindfulness-based stress reduction program on depression and physical problems in depressed elderly individuals.

Journal of Health Psychology December 21, 2024 Nima Javadzade, Victoria Omranifard, Fatemeh Zargar et al. 4 citations

The aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) program on depression and physical problems in depressed elderly individuals. This randomized controlled trial was conducted on two groups of 30 depressed elderly individuals over 60 years old using purposive sampling. The GDS and the PE-PSI questionnaires were administered to both groups...

DOI: 10.1177/13591053241302472 (opens in new tab) Full text (opens in new tab) Mbsr Depression Elderly individuals Mindfulness-based stress reduction +1

The self-efficacy for regular meditation practice scale (SERMS): Development and psychometric validation

Journal of Health Psychology September 30, 2024 Carly Hunt, Janelle E. Letzen, Dana Direnzio et al.

The health benefits of meditation are well-documented, yet people struggle to practice regularly. Domain-specific self-efficacy is an important modifiable driver of health behavior change that is poorly understood in the meditation context. As such, the present study developed the Self-Efficacy for Regular Meditation Practice Scale (SERMS) assessing confidence in one’s capacity to meditate...

DOI: 10.1177/13591053241274462 (opens in new tab) Meditation Exploratory factor analysis Confirmatory factor analysis Context archaeology +4

Qualitative findings from a randomized trial of mindfulness-based and cognitive-behavioral group therapy for opioid-treated chronic low back pain

Journal of Health Psychology April 28, 2024 David Horton, David K. Woods, Eric L Garland et al.

This article reports qualitative outcomes from a randomized controlled trial comparing eight weeks of cognitive-behavioral group therapy for chronic pain (CBT-CP) and mindfulness-based group therapy (MBT) in individuals with chronic low back pain (CLBP). Approximately 10 months post-treatment, 108 participants completed structured qualitative interviews to express how the study treatment...

Implications for a mindfulness-enhanced positive affect induction: A brief commentary toward acute pain management.

Journal of Health Psychology July 7, 2023 Dustin S Goerlitz, Amanda Hong, Valeria Bailey et al.

Over the past decade research has increased on dynamics between mindfulness, positive affect, and pain. While there have been studies examining the direct use of positive psychology for pain management, few have examined the use of a specific mindfulness-enhanced positive affect induction (i.e. a singular brief technique engendering mindfulness and strong positive affect) toward acute pain and...

The lived experience of Buddhist-oriented religious coping in late life: Buddhism as a cognitive schema.

Journal of Health Psychology September 1, 2021 Jianbin Xu

This article explores how older Buddhists in Singapore use Buddhist beliefs and practices to cope with stress. Semi-structured interviews with six older Buddhists were conducted. Interview transcripts were analyzed using interpretative phenomenological analysis. Data analysis identified three ways of Buddhist-oriented religious coping: meaning-making coping, meditative coping, and...

DOI: 10.1177/1359105319882741 (opens in new tab) Full text (opens in new tab) Cognitive processing Coping Interpretative phenomenological analysis Older person +1

Mediational pathways of meditation and exercise on mental health and perceived stress: A randomized controlled trial.

Journal of Health Psychology October 2020 Ellen Goldstein, James Topitzes, Roger L Brown et al.

This study investigated the effects of mindfulness and exercise training on indicators of mental health and stress by examining shared mediators of program effects. Community-recruited adults (N = 413) were randomized into one of three conditions: (a) mindfulness-based stress reduction, (b) moderate intensity exercise, or (c) wait-list control. Composite indicator structural equation models...

DOI: 10.1177/1359105318772608 (opens in new tab) Full text (opens in new tab) Meditation Exercise Mental health Mindfulness-based stress reduction +1

Development and psychometric properties of the Self-efficacy for Mindfulness Meditation Practice scale.

Journal of Health Psychology October 2020 Gurjeet S Birdee, Kenneth A Wallston, Sujata G Ayala et al.

This study aimed to develop a self-efficacy measure for mindfulness meditation practice (Self-efficacy for Mindfulness Meditation Practice scale). The scale was developed through a process of expert consensus, cognitive interviewing, and evaluation among 199 mindfulness meditation practitioners who completed an online survey. The 9-item Self-efficacy for Mindfulness Meditation Practice scale...

DOI: 10.1177/1359105318783041 (opens in new tab) Full text (opens in new tab) Mindfulness meditation Mindfulness-based stress reduction Scale development Self-efficacy

Chronic pain experience on depression and physical disability: The importance of acceptance and mindfulness-based processes in a sample with rheumatoid arthritis

Journal of Health Psychology February 1, 2019 J. Costa, J. Pinto-Gouveia, J. Marôco

The mediating effect of acceptance and mindfulness in the relationship between pain, depression, and physical disability was examined in 55 rheumatoid arthritis patients. Results showed that the relationship between pain and depression was mediated by both nonreact and acceptance. By contrast, the relationship between pain and physical disability was mediated by acceptance but not by nonreact....

Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for obsessive-compulsive disorder: Study protocol for a randomized controlled trial with functional magnetic resonance imaging and a 6-month follow-up

Journal of Health Psychology July 5, 2018 Lu Lu, Tianran Zhang, Rui Gao et al. 8 citations

This article presents a study protocol for a single-blind randomized controlled trial to test the efficacy and feasibility of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy. A total of 120 un-medicated Chinese obsessive-compulsive disorder patients will be randomized to the mindfulness-based cognitive therapy group, the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor group or the psycho-education group for 11...

Effectiveness of Mindfulness-based interventions on physiological and psychological complications in adults with diabetes: A systematic review.

Journal of Health Psychology July 2017 Farhan Noordali, Jennifer Cumming, Janice L Thompson

This systematic review aimed to examine the effectiveness of Mindfulness-based interventions in reducing diabetes-related physiological and psychological symptoms in adults with types 1 and 2 diabetes. Five databases were systematically searched. A total of 11 studies satisfied the inclusion criteria. Mindfulness-based intervention effectiveness for physiological outcomes (glycaemic control and...

DOI: 10.1177/1359105315620293 (opens in new tab) Full text (opens in new tab) Diabetes Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy Mindfulness-based stress reduction Systematic review

Pain, mindfulness, and spirituality: A randomized controlled trial comparing effects of mindfulness and relaxation on pain-related outcomes in migraineurs

Journal of Health Psychology August 1, 2015 Margaret Feuille, Ken Pargament

In order to examine mindfulness as an intervention for pain, 107 migraineurs, predominantly college students, were randomly assigned to brief training in standardized mindfulness, spiritualized mindfulness, and simple relaxation instructions. After 2 weeks of daily practice, participants completed the cold-pressor task while practicing their assigned technique, and their experience of the task...

Participant Experiences of a Mindfulness-based Cognitive Therapy Group for Cardiac Rehabilitation

Journal of Health Psychology July 1, 2009 Kirsty Griffiths, P.M. Camic, J.M. Hutton

Recently there has been a growth of interest in mindfulness-based psychotherapeutic approaches across a range of medical problems. Cardiac rehabilitation patients often suffer from stress, worry, anxiety and depression, all of which can lead to poor prognosis and worsening of cardiac symptoms. Using interpretive phenomenological analysis (IPA) of participant experiences, this study reports on...

Serum cytokines, mood and sleep after a qigong program: is qigong an effective psychobiological tool?

Journal of Health Psychology January 2009 Juan M Manzaneque, Francisca M Vera, Francisco M Rodriguez et al.

Qigong is an ancient Chinese psychosomatic exercise that integrates movement, breathing and meditation into a single multifaceted practice. The present study was designed to assess the effects of qigong practice on serum cytokines, mood and subjective sleep quality. Experimental participants underwent a qigong training program for one month. Blood samples for the quantification of TNF-alpha and...

Love Medicine for the Dying and Their Caregivers

Journal of Health Psychology March 1, 2008 Dorothy Agnes Lander, John Graham‐Pole 16 citations

We present a body of evidence for love medicine, originating in the shamanic physical/spiritual healing arts, embodying end-of-life (EOL) palliation through relationships of loving, artful witness between caregivers and receivers. We base the conclusions of our professional (doctor) and familial (spouse) practices on the practitioner/research methodology, Appreciative Inquiry , focused on...

An Exploratory Study of a Meditation-based Intervention for Binge Eating Disorder

Journal of Health Psychology May 1, 1999 Jean L. Kristeller, C. Brendan Hallett 681 citations

The efficacy of a 6-week meditation-based group intervention for Binge Eating Disorder (BED) was evaluated in 18 obese women, using standard and eating-specific mindfulness meditation exercises. A single-group extended baseline design assessed all variables at 3 weeks pre-and post-, and at 1, 3, and 6 weeks; briefer assessment occurred weekly.Binges decreased in frequency, from 4.02/week to...