Mindfulness training accelerates anxiety and depression relief via enhanced psychological resilience
Ling Zhu, Lu-Yao Ji, Chao Shi, Xian-Hui Sun, Juan Wang
World Journal of Psychiatry June 30, 2026 DOI: 10.5498/wjp.117862 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Randomized controlled trial Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 133 |
| Population | Patients with anxiety/depression symptoms |
| Intervention | structured mindfulness training |
| Duration | 8-week intervention |
| Topics | Anxiety Meditation Depression |
| Keywords | Psychological resilience Facet psychology Depression economics Rating scale Mental health Clinical psychology Mediation Psychological intervention Randomized controlled trial Self-efficacy |
| Key findings | Mindfulness training reduced anxiety and depression symptoms, and psychological resilience partially mediated these reductions. |
Abstract
Background: Anxiety and depression are prevalent and often co-occurring mental health disorders. While mindfulness training has shown efficacy in reducing symptoms, the underlying mechanisms, particularly the role of psychological resilience, remain underexplored. This study investigates whether mindfulness training alleviates anxiety and depression and hypothesizes that psychological resilience mediates this relationship.
Aim: To test whether mindfulness training eases anxiety and depression and whether resilience acts as a mediator.
Methods: In an 8 weeks study, 133 patients with anxiety/depression symptoms were randomly divided into a control group (65 cases) and an observation group (68 cases). The observation group received structured mindfulness training alongside usual care. Pre-intervention and post-intervention assessments of anxiety, depression, mindfulness, and resilience were performed using the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale, Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire, and 10-item Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale, and the mediating role of psychological resilience was also examined.
Results: At baseline the groups did not differ on gender, age, illness duration or employment status (P > 0.05). Post-intervention, the observation group showed significantly greater improvement than the control group, with lower Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (20.88 ± 2.52 vs 25.95 ± 2.61) and Hamilton Depression Rating Scale scores (21.24 ± 1.65 vs 26.37 ± 1.94), and higher Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (125.37 ± 12.72 vs 112.14 ± 12.05) and 10-item Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale scores (34.53 ± 2.87 vs 28.31 ± 4.13) (P < 0.001). Bootstrapped mediation analysis (5000 samples) indicated that psychological resilience significantly mediated the intervention’s benefits, accounting for 9.89% of anxiety reduction (indirect effect = -0.498, 95%CI: -1.045 to -0.010) and 18.97% of depression reduction (indirect effect = -1.002, 95%CI: -1.570 to -0.327).
Conclusion: Mindfulness therapy lessens anxiety and depression both on its own and by boosting resilience, offering a dual pathway that makes it a valuable add-on treatment for these disorders.