Journal of Clinical Psychology
December 29, 2005
Shauna L. Shapiro, Linda E. Carlson, John A. Astin et al.
3,933 citations
A theoretical model of mindfulness is proposed to explain how it produces positive changes in psychological and physical health. The paper suggests that while mindfulness-based interventions are effective for treating symptoms, the mechanisms behind these effects remain unclear. The model aims to identify potential processes through which mindfulness operates, offering directions for future empirical research on these mechanisms.
Journal of Clinical Psychology
January 1, 2006
Mark A. Lau, Scott R. Bishop, Zindel V. Segal et al.
1,462 citations
A new self-report questionnaire, the Toronto Mindfulness Scale (TMS), measures the state of mindfulness. In two studies, the scale showed good internal consistency and two factors: Curiosity and Decentering. TMS scores increased with more mindfulness meditation experience. In a second study, participants in an 8-week mindfulness-based stress reduction program showed increased TMS scores after treatment, and Decentering scores predicted improvements in clinical outcomes. The TMS is a promising measure with good psychometric properties and predictive validity for treatment outcome.
Journal of Clinical Psychology
May 16, 2008
Shauna L. Shapiro, Doug Oman, Carl E. Thoresen et al.
694 citations
College students who learned either Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction or the Eight Point Program showed increased mindfulness eight weeks later, compared with a waitlist group. Greater mindfulness partly explained reductions in perceived stress and rumination. Adherence to the practices predicted positive outcomes. The findings suggest that distinct meditation-based interventions can cultivate at least one aspect of mindfulness, as measured by the Mindful Attention and Awareness Scale, and that this increase may contribute to well-being.
Journal of Clinical Psychology
March 23, 2009
James Carmody, Ruth A. Baer
563 citations
The standard Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) program requires 26 hours of class time, but some groups cannot commit to that. This review examined published studies of MBSR, some of which used fewer class hours, and found no significant correlation between the number of in-class hours and the effect sizes for psychological outcomes in either clinical or nonclinical samples. The finding suggests that abbreviated MBSR programs may be worthwhile for populations where reducing psychological distress is the goal and longer time commitments are a barrier. However, the standard format has the most empirical support, and class time may matter for other outcomes. The authors call for systematic empirical studies on this question.
Journal of Clinical Psychology
March 6, 2009
James Carmody, Ruth A. Baer, Emily L. B. Lykins et al.
528 citations
A theory proposes that mindfulness training works by changing how people relate to their experiences, a process called reperceiving, which then improves self-regulation, values clarity, mental flexibility, and exposure to experiences, leading to better health. Testing this with participants in a mindfulness-based stress-reduction program did not support that changes in reperceiving alone explained how mindfulness affected those four factors. However, when mindfulness and reperceiving scores were combined, there was partial support that those four factors helped reduce psychological distress. The text discusses difficulties in measuring these concepts.
Journal of Clinical Psychology
January 19, 2011
Alberto Chiesa, Peter Malinowski
456 citations
Mindfulness-based approaches are increasingly used to treat psychological, psychiatric, and physical problems, including ancient Buddhist meditations (Vipassana, Zen), modern group-based programs (mindfulness-based stress reduction, mindfulness-based cognitive therapy), and psychological interventions (dialectical behavioral therapy, acceptance and commitment therapy). This review examines their commonalities and differences in philosophical background, techniques, aims, outcomes, neurobiology, and psychological mechanisms. The interventions show large differences in how mindfulness is conceptualized and practiced. Whether these practices are considered unitary or distinct will likely influence future research directions.
Journal of Clinical Psychology
December 22, 2010
Shauna L. Shapiro, Kirk Warren Brown, Carl E. Thoresen et al.
448 citations
A randomized controlled trial with 30 participants tested whether people who already have higher levels of trait mindfulness benefit more from mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR). Compared to a control group, MBSR led to increases in trait mindfulness, subjective well-being, and empathy that lasted up to 12 months. Participants who began with higher mindfulness showed larger gains in those areas plus hope, and larger reductions in perceived stress over the same period.
Journal of Clinical Psychology
May 1, 2004
William R Miller
274 citations
Quantum change describes sudden, dramatic, and enduring transformations that alter a person's emotions, thoughts, and behaviors across many areas of life. This phenomenon has been recognized since the early days of psychology, especially in William James's work on religious experience. Such changes can happen during psychotherapy but more often occur outside of it, and they share common features in how they unfold and what they involve. This introduction outlines the essential characteristics of quantum change, including two qualitative subtypes, what triggers it, its progression, and the lasting effects that follow.
Journal of Clinical Psychology
April 1, 2009
Shauna L. Shapiro
241 citations
Two decades of empirical research have generated considerable evidence supporting the efficacy of mindfulness-based interventions across a wide range of clinical and nonclinical populations, and these interventions have been incorporated into a variety of health care settings. Still, there are many unanswered questions and potential horizons to be investigated. This special issue presents a combination of articles concerning aspects of clinical and scientific integration of mindfulness within psychotherapy and psychoeducational settings. The volume supports the importance and viability of the integration of mindfulness into psychology and offers interesting and meaningful directions for future research.
Journal of Clinical Psychology
December 9, 2005
J. Mark G. Williams, Danielle S. Duggan, Catherine Crane et al.
235 citations
Once suicidal thoughts emerge in depression, they tend to return whenever sad mood reappears, part of a suicidal mode of mind. This article reviews how mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) may prevent reactivation of that suicidal mode. MBCT combines mindfulness meditation with cognitive therapy, training participants to observe moment-by-moment experience with nonjudgmental acceptance. This helps people see thoughts as mental events rather than facts, a skill called metacognitive awareness. A case example illustrates how mindfulness skills develop and relate to cognitive processes fueling suicidal crises. Pilot work suggests MBCT is a promising intervention for those with past suicidal ideation; an ongoing controlled trial will provide further evidence.
Journal of Clinical Psychology
March 6, 2009
David P. Johnson, David L Penn, Barbara L. Fredrickson et al.
158 citations
Loving-kindness meditation (LKM) may help reduce negative symptoms of schizophrenia-spectrum disorders, such as anhedonia, avolition, and asociality, while enhancing hope and purpose in life. Case studies illustrate how to conduct this group treatment, its potential benefits, and difficulties that may arise. LKM requires further empirical support but promises to be an important intervention given the limited treatments for negative symptoms.
Journal of Clinical Psychology
September 7, 2007
Arthur Margolin, Zev Schuman-Olivier, Mark Beitel et al.
75 citations
Impulsivity is linked to heavier intoxicant use and HIV risk behavior, and lower spiritual practices and motivation for recovery, among HIV-positive drug users. A manual-guided therapy integrating cognitive and Buddhist psychologies, spiritual self-schema (3-S(+)) therapy, was tested in a preliminary study. Compared with standard care, patients who completed 3-S(+) therapy showed greater reductions in impulsivity and intoxicant use, and greater increases in spiritual practices and motivation for abstinence, HIV prevention, and medication adherence.
Journal of Clinical Psychology
February 24, 2009
Melissa Tanner, Fred Travis, Carolyn Gaylord-King et al.
58 citations
A 3-month randomized waitlist-controlled trial with 295 university students examined whether practicing the Transcendental Meditation program increases mindfulness, measured by the Kentucky Inventory of Mindfulness Skills. Participants who learned TM showed greater increases in overall mindfulness scores over time compared to those on the waitlist. All mindfulness subscales were positively correlated at the start, and these correlations did not change over time or differ between groups. This suggests that previously reported positive correlations between observing and accepting-without-judgment skills only among meditators may stem from self-selection rather than a direct effect of meditation practice.
Journal of Clinical Psychology
January 26, 2012
Jennifer N. Felder, Sona Dimidjian, Zindel V. Segal
55 citations
Therapeutic collaboration between psychotherapist and group participants in mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) is described as central to two components: inquiry and leading mindfulness practices. During inquiry, the therapist asks questions about the participant's moment-to-moment experience of the practice, conducted with curious, open, and warm attitudes. Collaboration is also maintained through co-participation in mindfulness practices. A case illustration is provided, and recommendations for clinical practice are offered.
Journal of Clinical Psychology
October 1, 1977
Michael C. Dillbeck
48 citations
Practicing the Transcendental Meditation (TM) technique twice daily for two weeks reduces anxiety more effectively than twice-daily passive relaxation. Thirty-three graduate and undergraduate students were randomly assigned to either a TM group or a relaxation group. After two weeks, TM was significantly more effective at lowering anxiety, as measured by the Trait scale of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. This indicates that the anxiety-reducing effect of TM cannot be attributed solely to sitting quietly twice daily, though further research is needed to determine how much participants' expectations for change contributed to the outcome.
Journal of Clinical Psychology
May 3, 2001
Noori B. Gillani, Jonathan C. Smith
43 citations
Experienced Zen meditators (59 practitioners with at least six years of experience) showed distinct psychological profiles compared to a control group of 24 college students who read magazines. Meditators were less likely to believe in God, more likely to believe in Inner Wisdom, and more likely to exhibit relaxation dispositions such as Mental Quiet, Mental Relaxation, and Timeless/Boundless/Infinite. After an hour of Zazen, meditators reported greater increases in relaxation states including Mental Quiet, Love and Thankfulness, and Prayerfulness, along with reduced Worry. These findings support Smith's ABC Relaxation Theory.
Journal of Clinical Psychology
September 1, 2023
Martin J Dorahy, Amy Nesbit, Rachael Palmer et al.
13 citations
People with dissociative identity disorder (DID) and schizophrenia-spectrum disorders (SSD) both hear voices, but the experiences differ in key ways. DID participants reported voices as more internally located and generated, louder, and less controllable, and they endorsed more thought disorder symptoms. After accounting for sex, depersonalization, and childhood maltreatment, differences in voice loudness and controllability disappeared, but the DID group still reported more internal origin and derailment. The SSD group reported more distress, metaphysical beliefs about voices, incoherent thoughts, and word substitution. These latter features may reflect more psychotic processes.
Journal of Clinical Psychology
July 1, 1968
Robert B. Duke, Martin H. Keeler
11 citations
No Summary
Journal of Clinical Psychology
October 1, 1978
Robert O. Pihl, Zindel V. Segal, Diane Shea
5 citations
Sixty experienced marijuana smokers took part in a study testing how a negative expectancy affects marijuana intoxication. Participants adjusted a fingertip shock to mild discomfort; only those in threat groups expected random shocks during sessions. Under marijuana, participants who anticipated shock reported feeling less intoxicated, found the environment less pleasant, yet had higher pulse rates than those not expecting shock. The findings suggest a cognitive component, particularly labeling, influences the level of intoxication.
Journal of Clinical Psychology
February 1, 2024
Victoria A Grunberg, Jafar Bakhshaie, Heena R Manglani et al.
4 citations
Among 114 adults with neurofibromatosis (NF), a chronic neurogenetic condition that increases risk for poor quality of life, depression, and anxiety, improvements in quality of life were most explained by improved coping, followed by mindfulness and optimism. Improvements in depression and anxiety were most explained by mindfulness, followed by optimism, but were not explained by coping. Targeting mindfulness, coping, and optimism in psychosocial interventions may be a promising way to improve the lives of adults with NF.
Journal of Clinical Psychology
August 1, 2024
William K Macnulty, Jay M Uomoto, Seattle M Peterson
3 citations
A brief five-session mindfulness-based intervention (MSPEAR) improved perceived stress, positive affect, behavioral regulation, metacognition, sleep, self-efficacy, and life satisfaction in active-duty military service members with persistent symptoms after mild traumatic brain injury. Gains were maintained at a five-week follow-up. Pain catastrophizing (magnification and helplessness) also improved by follow-up, but pain interference did not change significantly. Neuropsychological tests showed improvements in sustained attention, working memory, cognitive flexibility, and inhibitory control. The intervention appears promising as a brief therapy for specific postconcussion symptoms, warranting a larger randomized controlled trial.
Journal of Clinical Psychology
July 1, 1965
Martin H. Keeler, Edward F. Doehne
1 citation
No Summary
Journal of Clinical Psychology
June 15, 2026
Lucas Cruz, Fernando R. Beserra, Julia M.k. Freind et al.
Music is frequently used in psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy, but there is no standardized protocol for selecting or implementing it. A systematic review of 36 articles found that 25 mentioned music, mostly in studies of psilocybin and MDMA for depressive disorders and post-traumatic stress disorder. Procedures varied widely across studies, partly because different disorders and substances were investigated, and partly because no uniform guidelines exist. Identifying which features of music are prioritized may help guide future clinical practice and research.
Journal of Clinical Psychology
August 1, 2026
Zhaohui Wei, Shuxin Zhang, Jia Ma et al.
Adding mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) to escitalopram hydrobromide improves cognitive function, reduces depression severity, and enhances quality of life more than escitalopram alone in older adults with treatment-resistant depression (TRD). In a randomized trial of 230 older adults with TRD and cognitive impairment, the group receiving MBCT plus escitalopram showed significantly greater gains on the Montreal Cognitive Assessment and General Quality of Life Index-74 at both 6 and 12 weeks, along with greater reductions on the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, compared to the escitalopram-only group. The combined therapy also yielded higher rates of effective treatment outcomes with fewer ineffective responses.
Journal of Clinical Psychology
June 29, 2026
Ofra Walter, Sanford Nidich, Kimia Shahrokhi
Among 39 Israeli civilians evacuated after the October 7, 2023 attacks, participation in an 8-week transcendental meditation program was associated with statistically significant decreases in symptoms of PTSD, depression, anxiety, and sleep problems. The pilot study used standard questionnaires (PCL-5, PHQ-9, GAD-7, ISI) and found within-group improvements from baseline to post-test. The uncontrolled design means results are preliminary and require confirmation in randomized trials.