A Longitudinal Investigation of the Relative Temporal Association of Tranquility, Concentration, and the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaires (FFMQ) with Nonattachment and Mental Health
Ben C. L. Yu, Winnie W. S. Mak, Floria H. N. Chio, Hin-Tak Sik, Ryan M. K. Chan
Applied Research in Quality of Life April 22, 2025 DOI: 10.1007/s11482-025-10443-z (opens in new tab) via OpenAlex
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractAmong seven mindfulness-related qualities, tranquility most strongly predicted lower depressive symptoms and perceived stress, and higher mental well-being, peacefulness, and nonattachment over nine months in young adults without meditation experience. Observing, describing, nonreactivity, and acting with awareness also predicted some outcomes, but tranquility emerged as the most consistent predictor. The findings suggest that cultivating tranquility may be especially beneficial for mental health in mindfulness novices.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Longitudinal study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 274 |
| Population | Young adults without meditation experience (mean age 21.22, 78.5% women) |
| Duration | 9-month longitudinal study with assessments at baseline, 3 months, 6 months, and 9 months |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Keywords | Association psychology Facet psychology Mental health Clinical psychology |
| Citations | 1 |
| Key finding | Tranquility was the most predictive mindfulness-related quality for well-being, psychological distress, and nonattachment across nine months. |
Abstract
Abstract The present study aims to investigate the relative temporal associations of different types of mindfulness-related qualities (i.e., observing, describing, acting with awareness, non-reactivity, nonjudging, tranquility, and concentration) at the dispositional level with well-being, psychological distress, and nonattachment by a 9-month longitudinal study over four-time points. Data from 274 participants (Age mean = 21.22; 78.5% women) who did not have any meditation experience were analyzed using linear regression models. Two-hundred and forty-two, 223, 216 participants were retained at three-month (88%), six-month (81%), and nine-month (79%) follow-up assessments, respectively. The results showed that among the seven qualities, tranquility was the most predictive quality to the outcome variables, including depressive symptoms, perceived stress, mental well-being, peacefulness, and nonattachment, after controlling for the outcome variables’ scores measured at the previous time points and other qualities at baseline. Observing, describing, nonreactivity, and acting with awareness were also shown to be predictive of certain types of outcome variables. The present study might provide insights into which qualities could be specifically targeted in the practice of mindfulness for novices, aiming to optimize the benefits of practice on mental health.