Mindfulness-based interventions for psychiatric disorders: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
Simon B. Goldberg, Raymond P. Tucker, Preston A. Greene, Richard J. Davidson, Bruce E. Wampold, David J. Kearney, Tracy L. Simpson
Clinical Psychology Review February 1, 2018 DOI: 10.1016/j.cpr.2017.10.011 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Meta-analysis Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 12,005 |
| Population | Clinical populations with disorder-specific symptoms |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Key findings | Mindfulness-based interventions are superior to no treatment, minimal treatment, non-specific active controls, and specific active controls for disorder-specific symptoms at post-treatment and follow-up, and do not differ from evidence-based treatments. |
Abstract
Despite widespread scientific and popular interest in mindfulness-based interventions, questions regarding the empirical status of these treatments remain. We sought to examine the efficacy of mindfulness-based interventions for clinical populations on disorder-specific symptoms. To address the question of relative efficacy, we coded the strength of the comparison group into five categories: no treatment, minimal treatment, non-specific active control, specific active control, and evidence-based treatment. A total of 142 non-overlapping samples and 12,005 participants were included. At post-treatment, mindfulness-based interventions were superior to no treatment (d=0.55), minimal treatment (d=0.37), non-specific active controls (d=0.35), and specific active controls (d=0.23). Mindfulness conditions did not differ from evidence-based treatments (d=-0.004). At follow-up, mindfulness-based interventions were superior to no treatment conditions (d=0.50), non-specific active controls (d=0.52), and specific active controls (d=0.29). Mindfulness conditions did not differ from minimal treatment conditions (d=0.38) and evidence-based treatments (d=0.09). Effects on specific disorder subgroups showed the most consistent evidence in support of mindfulness for depression, pain conditions, smoking, and addictive disorders. Results support the notion that mindfulness-based interventions hold promise as evidence-based treatments.
Comparable studies
Other systematic reviews and meta-analyses on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Meditation Programs for Psychological Stress and Well-being Diverse adult clinical populations | 2014 | Meta-analysis | n = 3,515 |
| Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction for Stress Management in Healthy People: A Review and Meta-Analysis Healthy subjects | 2009 | Systematic review and meta-analysis | |
| The psychological effects of meditation: A meta-analysis. Nonclinical groups of adult meditators | 2012 | Meta-analysis | n = 163 |
| Efficacy of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy in Prevention of Depressive Relapse Adults with recurrent depression in full or partial remission | 2016 | Meta-analysis of individual patient data from randomized controlled trials | n = 1,258 |
| Mindfulness‐Based Stress Reduction and Mindfulness‐Based Cognitive Therapy – a systematic review of randomized controlled trials | 2011 | Systematic review |
Citations in the library
Cited by 399
- The Empirical Status of Mindfulness-Based Interventions: A Systematic Review of 44 Meta-Analyses of Randomized Controlled Trials Perspectives on Psychological Science February 16, 2021
- Mindfulness Meditation and Psychopathology Annual Review of Clinical Psychology December 11, 2018
- Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for the treatment of current depressive symptoms: a meta-analysis Cognitive Behaviour Therapy February 8, 2019
- A mindfulness-based mobile health (mHealth) intervention among psychologically distressed university students in quarantine during the COVID-19 pandemic: A randomized controlled trial. Journal of Counseling Psychology July 15, 2021
- A neurophenomenological approach to non-ordinary states of consciousness: hypnosis, meditation, and psychedelics Trends in Cognitive Sciences December 22, 2022
and 394 more in the library
Cites 14
- Prevention of relapse/recurrence in major depression by mindfulness-based cognitive therapy. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology 2000
- Meditation Programs for Psychological Stress and Well-being JAMA Internal Medicine January 6, 2014
- Mindfulness Meditation and Improvement in Sleep Quality and Daytime Impairment Among Older Adults With Sleep Disturbances JAMA Internal Medicine February 16, 2015
- Effects of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy on Body Awareness in Patients with Chronic Pain and Comorbid Depression Frontiers in Psychology June 30, 2016
- Is mindfulness research methodology improving over time? A systematic review PLoS One October 31, 2017
and 9 more in the library