Effects of the Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) program on college students' mindfulness, perceived stress, depression, experience avoidance, and trait anxiety

A mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) program increased mindfulness—particularly observing, non-reactivity, and describing—and reduced experiential avoidance, including procrastination and behavioral avoidance, in 35 college students. The program did not change perceived stress, depression, or trait anxiety levels.

Study at a glance

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) programs on mindfulness, perceived stress, depression, experience avoidance, and trait anxiety of college students. Participants in the study conducted the MBCT program from April to June 2024 for 35 students who participated in liberal arts classes at K University in Daejeon. For measurement, the mindfulness 5-factor scale, perceived stress scale, depression scale (CES-D), multidimensional experiential avoidance scale, and trait anxiety scale were measured before and after the program. The research results are as follows. First, the MBCT program was found to increase the level of mindfulness in college students. In particular, among the sub-factors of mindfulness, significant changes were found in observing, non-reactivity, and describing. Second, the MBCT program did not show any change in the perceived level of stress among college students. Third, the MBCT program did not show any change in the level of depression in college students. Fourth, the MBCT program was found to reduce the level of experiential avoidance of college students, and among the sub-factors of experiential avoidance, there were significant changes in procrastination and behavioral avoidance. Fifth, the MBCT program did not show any change in the level of trait anxiety of college students. Finally, the limitations and supplements of this study were presented.