Present Moment Contact and Nonjudgment: Pilot Data on Dismantling Mindful Awareness in Trauma-Related Symptomatology
Christine E. Valdez, Andrew M. Sherrill, Michelle M. Lilly
Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment December 1, 2016 DOI: 10.1007/s10862-016-9548-8 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Pilot experimental study Pilot study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 40 |
| Population | Women with interpersonal victimization histories |
| Intervention | Nonjudgment condition |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Keywords | Present moment contact Nonjudgment Trauma |
| Key findings | In the absence of nonjudgment, present moment contact was related to high negative affect and low positive affect, but unrelated to trauma intrusion frequency. With nonjudgment, present moment contact was unrelated to affect and inversely related to trauma intrusion frequency, suggesting that isolating present moment contact from nonjudgment may be unhelpful and potentially iatrogenic. |
Abstract
Conventional views purport that mindfulness includes two components: present moment contact (PMC) and nonjudgment. While mindfulness-based interventions that target a broad spectrum of psychopathology, including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), emphasize “being present” as a key mechanism toward wellness, researchers have struggled to measure PMC and assess its clinical utility. Is there any inherent value in PMC or is its clinical utility contingent upon simultaneously engaging in nonjudgment? This pilot study introduces an experimental paradigm designed to dismantle mindfulness and examine the utility of these two components. Forty women with interpersonal victimization histories were assigned to either a nonjudgment condition or a control condition. Next, participants recalled their trauma and then wrote down whatever information was present in their awareness. PMC was measured in both conditions by assessing the frequency of present tense verbs used within these written protocols. As predicted, in the absence of nonjudgment, PMC was related to high negative affect and low positive affect, though unrelated to trauma intrusion frequency. In the nonjudgment condition, PMC was no longer related to state affect and inversely related to trauma intrusion frequency. These pilot data suggest that isolating PMC from nonjudgment may be unhelpful and perhaps iatrogenic.
Comparable studies
Other experimental studies on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| The benefits of being present: Mindfulness and its role in psychological well-being. Cancer patients (clinical intervention study) | 2003 | Mixed methods: scale development, correlational, quasi-experimental, laboratory, experience-sampling, and clinical intervention study | |
| Loving-kindness meditation increases social connectedness. | 2008 | Controlled laboratory experiment | |
| Mindfulness and mind-wandering: Finding convergence through opposing constructs. | 2012 | Two studies: correlational study and experimental study | |
| Mental Training Enhances Attentional Stability: Neural and Behavioral Evidence | 2009 | Experimental study | |
| Mindfulness meditation and substance use in an incarcerated population. Incarcerated population | 2006 | Quasi-experimental with treatment-as-usual control condition |
Citations in the library
Cited by 4
- Autobiographical Memory and Mindfulness: a Critical Review with a Systematic Search Mindfulness May 23, 2022
- Mindfulness, acceptance, and emotion regulation: Perspectives from Monitor and Acceptance Theory (MAT) October 5, 2019
- Mindfulness-based interventions for preventing childhood maltreatment and restoring health among survivors: a public health perspective. Mindfulness June 1, 2025
- Dismantling Mindfulness-Based Programs: A Systematic Review to Identify Active Components of Treatment. Mindfulness July 25, 2020
Cites 11
- The benefits of being present: Mindfulness and its role in psychological well-being. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 2003
- Mindfulness: A proposed operational definition. Clinical Psychology Science and Practice 2004
- Construct Validity of the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire in Meditating and Nonmeditating Samples Assessment February 29, 2008
- Defining mindfulness by how poorly I think I pay attention during everyday awareness and other intractable problems for psychology's (re)invention of mindfulness: Comment on Brown et al. (2011). Psychological Assessment 2011
- Perils and promise in defining and measuring mindfulness: Observations from experience. Clinical Psychology Science and Practice 2004
and 6 more in the library