Mindfulness and progressive muscle relaxation as standardized session‐introduction in individual therapy: A randomized controlled trial
Johannes Mander, Paul Blanck, Andreas B. Neubauer, Paula Kröger, Christoph Flückiger, Wolfgang Lutz, Sven Barnow, Hinrich Bents, Thomas Heidenreich
Journal of Clinical Psychology October 8, 2018 DOI: 10.1002/jclp.22695 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Randomized controlled trial Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 162 |
| Population | Patients with anxiety and depression |
| Interventions | Session-introducing intervention with mindfulness elements (SIIME) progressive muscle relaxation (PMR) treatment-as-usual (TAU) |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Citations | 56 |
| Key findings | Symptoms decreased and therapeutic alliance increased significantly over therapy in all three conditions, but there were no significant time-by-condition interactions, indicating comparable efficiency of SIIME, progressive muscle relaxation, and treatment-as-usual. The authors conclude that SIIME showed no advantage over the comparison conditions and that add-on mindfulness might not improve individual therapy related to alliance and outcome. |
Abstract
Objective: There is scarce research on the effects of mindfulness in individual therapy. As many practitioners integrate mindfulness exercises into individual therapy, empirical evidence is of high clinical relevance.
Method: We investigated the effects of a session-introducing intervention with mindfulness elements (SIIME) in a randomized, controlled design. The effects of SIIME on therapeutic alliance and symptomatic outcome were compared with progressive muscle relaxation (PMR) and treatment-as-usual (TAU) control conditions. The sample comprised 162 patients with anxiety and depression.
Results: Multilevel modeling revealed a significant symptom reduction and significant increase of alliance over the course of therapy. There were no significant time-condition interactions on outcome and alliance, indicating the comparable efficiency of all three treatment conditions.
Conclusions: We found no advantage of SIIME versus PMR and TAU. Add-on mindfulness might not improve individual therapy related to alliance and outcome.