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Mindfulness and hope: distinct yet complementary relationships with psychological well-being.

David B. Feldman, Shauna L. Shapiro, Diane E Dreher

Scientific Reports April 1, 2026 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-026-46370-8 (opens in new tab)

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AI-extracted from the abstract
Characteristics Cross-sectional survey Peer reviewed
Sample size 145
Population Undergraduates (mean age 18.83; 112 women, 32 men, 1 unreported)
Measures Mindful Attention Awareness Scale, State Hope Scale, measures of depression, anxiety, stress, life satisfaction, optimism, sense of control, and executive functioning
Topics Anxiety Depression Meditation
Keywords Humans Cross-sectional studies Stress, psychological Personal satisfaction Adolescent Female Young adult Hope Surveys and questionnaires Psychological well-being
Key findings Mindfulness and hope were not correlated with each other (r = .05) but were independently associated with well-being: mindfulness uniquely with lower anxiety, disinhibition, and negative-assertive control, and hope uniquely with greater life satisfaction and positive-assertive control. The authors argue the two constructs play complementary rather than conflicting or redundant roles.

Abstract

Mindfulness and hope are both associated with well-being, yet their orientations—present-focused awareness versus future-directed striving—are seemingly at odds. Moreover, limited research addresses them simultaneously. We investigated the relationship between mindfulness and hope, assessing their associations with psychological well-being. A cross-sectional survey of 145 undergraduates (Mage = 18.83; 112 women, 32 men, 1 unreported) tested the degree to which each construct was associated with measures of depression, anxiety, stress, life satisfaction, optimism, sense of control, and executive functioning. Mindfulness was assessed using the Mindful Attention Awareness Scale, hope using the State Hope Scale, and well-being using various validated self-report measures. Mindfulness and hope, although not correlated with each other (r = .05, p = .56), were independently associated with many of these measures. Additionally, mindfulness was uniquely associated with anxiety (β = − 0.48), disinhibition (β = − 0.41), and negative-assertive control (β = − 0.39), whereas hope was uniquely associated with life satisfaction (β = 0.25) and positive-assertive control (β = 0.39). The shared variance jointly associated with both mindfulness and hope across all well-being measures was minimal (≤ 1.8%). Mindfulness and hope appear to be distinct constructs that independently relate to psychological well-being. Their unique associations suggest complementary, rather than conflicting or redundant, roles.

Comparable studies

Other cross-sectional and survey studies on meditation, most cited first.

Study Year Design Participants
Construct Validity of the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire in Meditating and Nonmeditating Samples Experienced meditators and nonmeditating comparison groups 2008 Cross-sectional study
Neural Correlates of Dispositional Mindfulness During Affect Labeling Adult participants 2007 Observational cross-sectional n = 27
Assessing mindfulness in children and adolescents: Development and validation of the Child and Adolescent Mindfulness Measure (CAMM). School-aged children and adolescents 2011 Cross-sectional validation study n = 1,413
Mindfulness and self-compassion as predictors of psychological wellbeing in long-term meditators and matched nonmeditators Experienced meditators and demographically matched nonmeditators 2012 Cross-sectional study n = 152
Mechanisms of Action in the Inverse Relationship Between Mindfulness and Psychological Distress Undergraduates 2008 Cross-sectional, correlational

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Anxiety Depression Meditation