Mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) has shown effectiveness for a variety of mental health conditions. However, it is not known for whom the intervention is most effective. In a randomized controlled trial (N = 30), we explored whether individuals with higher levels of pretreatment trait mindfulness would benefit more from MBSR intervention. Results demonstrated that relative to a control...
AbstractIsolated sleep paralysis (ISP) has received scant attention in clinical populations, and there has been little empirical consideration of the role of fear in ISP episodes. To facilitate research and clinical work in this area, the authors developed a reliable semistructured interview (the Fearful Isolated Sleep Paralysis Interview) to assess ISP and their proposed fearful ISP (FISP)...
Nightmares are a common feature of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and are frequently resistant to treatment. Two emerging treatments for nightmares are pharmacotherapy with prazosin and psychotherapy using imagery rehearsal (IR). A case illustration demonstrates the application of these treatments with a client suffering from chronic, severe PTSD. The case illustrates the use of these...
AbstractThis study examined cognitive distortions and coping styles as potential mediators for the effects of mindfulness meditation on anxiety, negative affect, positive affect, and hope in college students. Our pre‐ and postintervention design had four conditions: control, brief meditation focused on attention, brief meditation focused on loving kindness, and longer meditation combining both...
As the field of psychology continues to expand and evolve, one fruitful avenue of exploration has been the integration of mindfulness into psychological theory and practice. Mindfulness is defined as the awareness that arises out of intentionally attending in an open and discerning way to whatever is arising in the present moment. Two decades of empirical research have generated considerable...
The mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) program was designed to be long enough for participants to grasp the principles of self-regulation through mindfulness and develop skill and autonomy in mindfulness practice. It traditionally consists of 26 hours of session time including eight classes of 2-1/2 hours and an all-day class. The circumstances of some groups exclude them from...
S. L. Shapiro and colleagues (2006) have described a testable theory of the mechanisms of mindfulness and how it affects positive change. They describe a model in which mindfulness training leads to a fundamental change in relationship to experience (reperceiving), which leads to changes in self-regulation, values clarification, cognitive and behavioral flexibility, and exposure. These four...
In this article, we describe the clinical applicability of loving-kindness meditation (LKM) to individuals suffering from schizophrenia-spectrum disorders with persistent negative symptoms. LKM may have potential for reducing negative symptoms such as anhedonia, avolition, and asociality while enhancing factors consistent with psychological recovery such as hope and purpose in life. Case...
Mindfulness is associated with low levels of neuroticism, anxiety, and depressive symptoms, as well as high levels of self-esteem and satisfaction with life (Brown & Ryan, 2003). As part of a 3-month randomized waitlist-controlled trial of the effects of the Transcendental Meditation (TM) program on university students (N=295), we examined the impact of TM practice on mindfulness as measured by...
Spiritually oriented psychodynamic psychotherapy pays particular attention to the roles that religious and spiritual beliefs, practices, and experiences play in the psychological life of the client. Contemporary psychoanalytic theorists offer multiple approaches to understand the functions of religious experience. Spirituality provides a means to address existential issues and provide a context...
AbstractThe interface of religiously accommodative and oriented treatments and the cognitive–behavioral tradition is explored. In terms of Hayes' characterization of the evolution of the cognitive–behavioral tradition through three waves, considerable theoretical, clinical, and empirical work emerged to support a religiously accommodative cognitive–behavioral therapy (CBT) during the...
This randomized pilot study investigated the effects of meditation with yoga (and psychoeducation) versus group therapy with hypnosis (and psychoeducation) versus psychoeducation alone on diagnostic status and symptom levels among 46 individuals with long-term depressive disorders. Results indicate that significantly more meditation group participants experienced a remission than did controls...
There has been great interest in determining if mindfulness can be cultivated and if this cultivation leads to well-being. The current study offers preliminary evidence that at least one aspect of mindfulness, measured by the Mindful Attention and Awareness Scale (MAAS; K. W. Brown & R. M. Ryan, 2003), can be cultivated and does mediate positive outcomes. Further, adherence to the practices...
This research provides a theoretical, empirical, and qualitative examination of the role of cultivating sacred moments in daily life on subjective well-being (SWB), psychological well-being (PWB), and stress. Seventy-three participants were randomly assigned to two groups: (a) a 3-week intervention group where members were instructed in cultivating sacred moments, or (b) a 3-week control group...
The purpose of this study was twofold. First, pretreatment correlations are presented among impulsivity, intoxicant use, HIV risk behavior, spirituality, and motivation in a sample of 38 HIV-positive drug users. Second, treatment outcomes are presented from a preliminary study of spiritual self-schema (3-S(+)) therapy - a manual-guided psychotherapy integrating cognitive and Buddhist...
In this study, the authors both developed and validated a self-report mindfulness measure, the Toronto Mindfulness Scale (TMS). In Study 1, participants were individuals with and without meditation experience. Results showed good internal consistency and two factors, Curiosity and Decentering. Most of the expected relationships with other constructs were as expected. The TMS scores increased...
Recently, the psychological construct mindfulness has received a great deal of attention. The majority of research has focused on clinical studies to evaluate the efficacy of mindfulness-based interventions. This line of research has led to promising data suggesting mindfulness-based interventions are effective for treatment of both psychological and physical symptoms. However, an equally...
Once suicidal thoughts have emerged as a feature of depression they are likely to be reactivated as part of a suicidal mode of mind whenever sad mood reappears. This article reviews the methods and the usefulness of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) as a treatment for the prevention of the reactivation of the suicidal mode. MBCT integrates mindfulness meditation practices and cognitive...
This longitudinal study tested the continuity hypothesis, which postulates that waking states and concerns are reflected in dreams. The relationship between dream content and negative waking affect was investigated both at fixed points in time and over a 6- to 10-year period. Twenty-eight participants completed measures of psychological well-being (PWB) and kept a dream log at two periods of...
Quantum change-the subject of this issue of In Session-refers to sudden, dramatic, and enduring transformations that affect a broad range of personal emotion, cognition, and behavior. This phenomenon has been described since the beginnings of psychology, most notably by William James in Varieties of Religious Experience. Quantum changes occur both within and (mostly) outside the context of...
This study is an attempt to rigorously map the psychological effects of Zen meditation among experienced practitioners. Fifty-nine Zen meditators with at least six years of experience practiced an hour of traditional Zazen seated meditation. A control group of 24 college students spent 60 min silently reading popular magazines. Before relaxation, all participants took the Smith Relaxation...
This study examined how mental health professionals make judgments about the religious authenticity and mental health of behaviors motivated by religious ideation. Participants were presented with written vignettes of religiously motivated behavior. The context of religious behavior varied on 6 dimensions and also on 3 levels of conventionality. The results indicated that the determining factor...
This study investigated the impact that meditation has on Fordyce's (1977, 1983) Personal Happiness Enhancement Program (PHEP). Experimental subjects were divided into two groups, both of which received instruction on the PHEP. Subjects in one experimental group were taught a meditation exercise in addition to the PHEP. A control group received no instruction. The Happiness Measure, Psychap...