The Effectiveness of Mindfulness-Based Therapy in Improving Well-Being: Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD): A Systematic Literature Review
Meza Saputri, Nono Hery Yoenanto, Wiwin Hendriani, Pramesti Pradna Paramita
Jurnal Obsesi Jurnal Pendidikan Anak Usia Dini December 7, 2025 DOI: 10.31004/obsesi.v9i6.7376 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Systematic review Randomized Qualitative Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) |
| Intervention | Mymind |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Key findings | The review reports that mindfulness interventions such as MBSR and Mymind improve emotional regulation, reduce stress, and enhance social skills, executive function, and brain activity in children with ASD, with family involvement strengthening these effects. The authors call for randomized controlled trials with multilevel, collaborative designs and sufficient participants to test long-term effectiveness. |
Abstract
This study aims to systematically review the effectiveness of mindfulness-based therapy in improving the well-being of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) through a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) approach. Articles were collected from the Scopus database using the keywords “autism spectrum disorder AND mindfulness,” “Mindfulness-Based Therapy AND Autism,” and “Mindfulness Intervention AND Autism.” The selection process followed the PRISMA guidelines, with inclusion criteria comprising quantitative studies with an experimental design involving mindfulness interventions for individuals with ASD, while exclusion criteria included non-empirical or qualitative-based research. The results indicate that mindfulness interventions, such as MBSR and Mymind, are effective in improving emotional regulation, reducing stress, enhancing social skills, and improving executive function and brain activity in children with ASD. Interventions involving families also strengthen the positive effects of therapy. These findings contribute to the development of psychological interventions that can support their application in clinical and special education settings, with recommendations for further research using randomized controlled trial (RCT) designs with a multilevel and collaborative approach across educational and clinical settings to test the long-term effectiveness of mindfulness, preferably with a sufficient number of participants to generalize the research findings.
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
Cites 7
- Mindfulness-Based Program for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder and Their Parents: Direct and Long-Term Improvements Mindfulness October 5, 2017
- Attention in Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder and the Effects of a Mindfulness-Based Program Journal of Attention Disorders September 15, 2018
- Distinct and shared therapeutic neural mechanisms of mindfulness-based and social support stress reduction groups in adults with autism spectrum disorder. Journal of Psychiatry and Neuroscience 2023
- Mindfulness-based stress reduction for autistic adults: A feasibility study in an outpatient context Autism May 16, 2023
- Quantitative EEG Changes in Youth With ASD Following Brief Mindfulness Meditation Exercise IEEE Transactions on Neural Systems and Rehabilitation Engineering August 17, 2022
and 2 more in the library