An empirical study on the alleviation of policewomen’ anxiety by mindfulness-based aerobic dance through affecting emotion regulation
Bing Liu, Huimin Liu, R. Wen, Hengzhi Guo, Mengqi Zhang
Scientific Reports April 16, 2025 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-025-98039-3 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Repeated-measures experimental design Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Policewomen |
| Interventions | Mindfulness-based aerobic dance Traditional aerobic dance |
| Duration | 8 and 12 weeks of exercise |
| Measures | State Anxiety Inventory (SAI), Trait Anxiety Inventory (TAI), Cognitive reappraisal, Expressive suppression |
| Topics | Anxiety Meditation |
| Key findings | Both mindfulness-based aerobic dance and traditional aerobic dance reduced anxiety in policewomen over 12 weeks. The mindfulness-based program produced significant changes in state anxiety, trait anxiety, cognitive reappraisal, and expressive suppression after 8 weeks, whereas the traditional program showed significant change in cognitive reappraisal at 8 weeks and in the other measures only at 12 weeks, which the authors interpret as mindfulness-based dance being faster and more effective. |
Abstract
Anxiety impacts both physical and mental health, yet it can be alleviated through exercise. This study aimed to investigate the effects of mindfulness-based aerobic dance on policewomen’s anxiety and compare them with those of traditional aerobic dance. A repeated-measures experimental design was employed to assess the effects of mindfulness-based aerobic dance and traditional aerobic dance on policewomen’s anxiety. In the mindfulness-based aerobic dance group, the scores of “SAI”, “TAI”, “Cognitive reappraisal” and “Expressive suppression” showed statistical significance (p <0.05) after 8 weeks of exercise. After 12 weeks of exercise, these scores were significantly lower than the baseline values. In the traditional aerobic dance group, the “Cognitive reappraisal” showed statistical significance (p = 0.041) after 8 weeks of exercise, and the “SAI”, “TAI” and “Expressive suppression” showed statistical significance (p <0.05) after 12 weeks of exercise. Both mindfulness-based aerobic dance and traditional aerobic dance can alleviate the anxiety of policewomen. However, the mindfulness-based aerobic dance is more rapid and effective in this regard.
Comparable studies
Other experimental studies on anxiety, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| A PILOT STUDY OF GROUP MINDFULNESS-BASED COGNITIVE THERAPY (MBCT) FOR COMBAT VETERANS WITH POSTTRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER (PTSD) Veterans with chronic combat posttraumatic stress disorder seeking treatment at a VA... | 2013 | Quasi-experimental with treatment-as-usual comparison group | n = 37 |
| Being present in the face of existential threat: The role of trait mindfulness in reducing defensive responses to mortality salience. | 2010 | Experimental study | |
| Neural correlates of mindfulness meditation-related anxiety relief Healthy adults with no prior meditation experience | 2013 | Within-subjects experimental study | n = 15 |
| Intensive mindfulness training-related changes in cognitive and emotional experience Community adults | 2009 | Quasi-experimental and longitudinal | n = 69 |
| Prospective examination of synthetic 5-methoxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine inhalation: effects on salivary IL-6, cortisol levels, affect, and non-judgment Volunteers | 2019 | Within-subjects experimental study | n = 11 |
Citations in the library
Cites 4
- How Does Mindfulness Meditation Work? Proposing Mechanisms of Action From a Conceptual and Neural Perspective Perspectives on Psychological Science October 14, 2011
- Benefits of mindfulness training for patients with progressive cognitive decline and their caregivers. American journal of Alzheimer's disease and other dementias August 25, 2014
- The direct and indirect benefits of dispositional mindfulness on self-esteem and social anxiety. Anxiety, Stress, and Coping March 1, 2011
- Mindfulness and emotion regulation difficulties in generalized anxiety disorder: Preliminary evidence for independent and overlapping contributions The Behavior Therapist November 1, 2008