Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy improves emotional reactivity to social stress: results from a randomized controlled trial.
Willoughby B. Britton, Ben Shahar, Ohad Szepsenwol, W Jake Jacobs
Behavior Therapy October 1, 2011 DOI: 10.1016/j.beth.2011.08.006 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Randomized controlled trial Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 52 |
| Population | Adults with partially remitted recurrent depression |
| Intervention | Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) |
| Duration | 8-week course; assessments before and after the 8-week trial period |
| Measures | Spielberger State Anxiety Inventory, Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) |
| Topics | Anxiety Depression Meditation |
| Keywords | Humans Recurrence Treatment outcome Stress, psychological Emotions Anxiety disorders Adult Middle aged Female Cognitive behavioral therapy |
| Key findings | MBCT was associated with decreased emotional reactivity to social evaluative stress, especially during the post-stressor recovery phase, whereas waitlist controls showed increased pre-stressor anticipatory anxiety. Improvements in emotional reactivity partially mediated improvements in depressive symptoms. |
Abstract
The high likelihood of recurrence in depression is linked to a progressive increase in emotional reactivity to stress (stress sensitization). Mindfulness-based therapies teach mindfulness skills designed to decrease emotional reactivity in the face of negative affect-producing stressors. The primary aim of the current study was to assess whether Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) is efficacious in reducing emotional reactivity to social evaluative threat in a clinical sample with recurrent depression. A secondary aim was to assess whether improvement in emotional reactivity mediates improvements in depressive symptoms. Fifty-two individuals with partially remitted depression were randomized into an 8-week MBCT course or a waitlist control condition. All participants underwent the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) before and after the 8-week trial period. Emotional reactivity to stress was assessed with the Spielberger State Anxiety Inventory at several time points before, during, and after the stressor. MBCT was associated with decreased emotional reactivity to social stress, specifically during the recovery (post-stressor) phase of the TSST. Waitlist controls showed an increase in anticipatory (pre-stressor) anxiety that was absent in the MBCT group. Improvements in emotional reactivity partially mediated improvements in depressive symptoms. Limitations include small sample size, lack of objective or treatment adherence measures, and non-generalizability to more severely depressed populations. Given that emotional reactivity to stress is an important psychopathological process underlying the chronic and recurrent nature of depression, these findings suggest that mindfulness skills are important in adaptive emotion regulation when coping with stress.
Comparable studies
Other randomized controlled trials on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alterations in Brain and Immune Function Produced by Mindfulness Meditation Healthy employees in a work environment | 2003 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 41 |
| Prevention of relapse/recurrence in major depression by mindfulness-based cognitive therapy. Recovered recurrently depressed patients | 2000 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 145 |
| Open hearts build lives: Positive emotions, induced through loving-kindness meditation, build consequential personal resources. Working adults | 2008 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 139 |
| Short-term meditation training improves attention and self-regulation Undergraduate Chinese students | 2007 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 40 |
| Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Depression: Replication and Exploration of Differential Relapse Prevention Effects. Recovered recurrently depressed patients | 2004 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 73 |
Citations in the library
Cited by 63
- Self-awareness, self-regulation, and self-transcendence (S-ART): a framework for understanding the neurobiological mechanisms of mindfulness Frontiers in Human Neuroscience 2012
- Prospects for a clinical science of mindfulness-based intervention. American Psychologist October 1, 2015
- Mindfulness-Based Interventions in Psychiatry. FOCUS: The Journal of Lifelong Learning in Psychiatry January 24, 2018
- Ayahuasca improves emotion dysregulation in a community sample and in individuals with borderline-like traits Psychopharmacology November 7, 2018
- Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy in patients with depression: current perspectives Neuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment June 1, 2018
and 58 more in the library
Cites 47
- Prevention of relapse/recurrence in major depression by mindfulness-based cognitive therapy. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology 2000
- Short-term meditation training improves attention and self-regulation Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences October 11, 2007
- Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Depression: Replication and Exploration of Differential Relapse Prevention Effects. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology 2004
- Attending to the present: mindfulness meditation reveals distinct neural modes of self-reference Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience August 13, 2007
- Mindfulness and acceptance: expanding the cognitive-behavioral tradition Choice Reviews Online July 1, 2005
and 42 more in the library