Differential sensitivity of mindfulness questionnaires to change with treatment: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
Ruth A. Baer, Jenny Gu, Kate Cavanagh, Clara Strauss
Psychological Assessment August 1, 2019 DOI: 10.1037/pas0000744 (opens in new tab)
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Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Systematic review and meta-analysis Randomized Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Meditation |
| Keywords | Humans Awareness Social perception Attention Psychometrics Psychotherapy Surveys and questionnaires |
| Key findings | Across 37 randomized controlled trials, mindfulness-based interventions produced significantly greater pre-post increases in mindfulness questionnaire scores than active nonmindfulness controls, with a small overall effect size. The effect was moderated by questionnaire type, control condition type, and session-time matching; when session time was matched, the difference was not significant. Facet-level increases appeared in observing, nonjudging, and nonreactivity but not describing or acting with awareness. |
Abstract
[Correction Notice: An Erratum for this article was reported in Vol 31(10) of Psychological Assessment (see record 2019-58643-005). The article should have been published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 3.0). Therefore, the article was amended to list the authors as copyright holders, and information about the terms of the CC BY 3.0 was added to the author note. In addition, the article is now open access. All versions of this article have been corrected.] In support of the construct validity of mindfulness questionnaires, meta-analytic reviews have reported that scores increase in mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs). However, several studies have also found increased mindfulness scores in interventions with no explicit mindfulness training, raising a question about differential sensitivity to change with treatment. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of 37 randomized controlled trials in which mindfulness questionnaires were administered before and after an evidence-based MBI and a nonmindfulness-based active control condition. The central question was whether increases in mindfulness scores would be greater in the MBI than in the comparison group. On average, participants in MBIs showed significantly greater pre-post changes in mindfulness scores than were seen in active control conditions with no explicit mindfulness elements, with a small overall effect size. This effect was moderated by which mindfulness questionnaire was used, by the type of active control condition, and by whether the MBI and control were matched for amount of session time. When mindfulness facet scores were analyzed separately, MBIs showed significantly greater pre-post increases than active controls in observing, nonjudging, and nonreactivity but not in describing or acting with awareness. Although findings provide partial support for the differential sensitivity of mindfulness questionnaires to change with treatment, the nonsignificant difference in pre-post change when the MBI and control were matched for session time highlights the need to clarify how mindfulness skills are acquired in MBIs and in other interventions and whether revisions to mindfulness questionnaires would increase their specificity to changes in mindfulness skills. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).
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 25
- Resting-state fMRI functional connectivity and mindfulness in clinical and non-clinical contexts: A review and synthesis. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews February 22, 2022
- Individual participant data systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials assessing adult mindfulness-based programmes for mental health promotion in non-clinical settings. Nature Mental Health July 10, 2023
- Meditation, mindfulness, and acceptance methods in psychotherapy: A systematic review Psychotherapy Research May 8, 2023
- Mindfulness or expectancy? The label of mindfulness leads to expectancy effects Counselling and Psychotherapy Research November 1, 2022
- Shared meditation involving cancer patients, health professionals and third persons is relevant and improves well-being: IMPLIC pilot study BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies May 18, 2022
and 20 more in the library
Cites 42
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and 37 more in the library