Exploring the initial findings of neuroscientific research on meditation, new horizons of further inquiry in consciousness research are apparent. While such studies of contemplative practices are still in their infancy, early findings promise to contribute in three key areas. These include: Neuroplasticity – physiological and psychological indices of short and long terms responses of the brain...
Areas associated with the default mode network (DMN) are substantially similar to those associated with meditation practice. However, no studies on DMN connectivity during resting states have been conducted on meditation practitioners. It was hypothesized that meditators would show heightened functional connectivity in areas of cortical midline activity. Thirty-five meditation practitioners and...
Langer's theory of mindfulness proposes that a mindful person seeks out and produces novelty, is attentive to context, and is flexible in thought and behavior. In three independent studies, the factor structure of the Langer Mindfulness/Mindlessness Scale was examined. Confirmatory factor analysis failed to replicate the four-factor model and a subsequent exploratory factor analysis revealed...
Study protocol for a randomized controlled trial comparing mindfulness-based cognitive therapy with maintenance anti-depressant treatment in the prevention of depressive relapse/recurrence: the PREVENT trial.
Youth in underserved, urban communities are at risk for a range of negative outcomes related to stress, including social-emotional difficulties, behavior problems, and poor academic performance. Mindfulness-based approaches may improve adjustment among chronically stressed and disadvantaged youth by enhancing self-regulatory capacities. This paper reports findings from a pilot randomized...
Twenty-six young participants, 18-25 years, with social phobia (SP) were randomly assigned to eight 2-hour sessions of group mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) and twelve 2-hour sessions of group cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) in a crossover design with participants receiving treatments in reversed order. Outcome was assessed after treatments, and at 6- and 12-month follow-ups. MBCT...
AbstractThis study was conducted to develop a mindfulness and self‐compassion enhancement intervention for middle‐aged women who complained of emotional distress and to ascertain whether participation in the mindfulness‐based programme was associated with an increase in psychological well‐being and the improvement of psychological symptoms. The results showed that time by group interactions...
The present open study investigates the feasibility of Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) in groups solely composed of bipolar patients of various subtypes. MBCT has been mostly evaluated with remitted unipolar depressed patients and little is known about this treatment in bipolar disorder. Bipolar outpatients (type I, II and NOS) were included and evaluated for depressive and hypomanic...
Both depression and substance use disorders represent major global public health concerns and are often co-occurring. Although there are ongoing discoveries regarding the pathophysiology and treatment of each condition, common mechanisms and effective treatments for co-occurring depression and substance abuse remain elusive. Mindfulness training has been shown recently to benefit both...
Decentering has been proposed as a potential mechanism of mindfulness-based interventions but has received limited empirical examination to date in experimental studies comparing mindfulness meditation to active comparison conditions. In the present study, we compared the immediate effects of mindful breathing (MB) to two alternative stress-management techniques: progressive muscle relaxation...
AddictionSeptember 15, 2010Carlo C. DiClemente6 citations
Mindfulness training has become an integral part of treatment approaches for a variety of behavioral and emotional problems. Brewer and colleagues 1 identify rumination and stress coping as potential common etiological components in major depression and substance abuse disorders and then speculate upon how mindfulness coping, specifically attention and acceptance, address these components and...
The paper by Brewer et al. [1] is based upon the assumption that there are common underlying mechanisms for depression and substance use disorders and the ambition is to provide a theoretical, clinical and neurobiological perspective that can frame the conceptualization and treatment of co-occurring depression and substance use disorders. The main starting point for this task is the meditation...
This is the protocol for a review and there is no abstract. The objectives are as follows: To examine the effectiveness and acceptability of all third wave CBT approaches compared with treatment as usual/waiting list/attention placebo control conditions for acute depression. To examine the effectiveness and acceptability of different third wave CBT approaches (ACT, compassionate mind training,...
Objective: This study examined the moderating effects of dispositional rumination and mindfulness on the relationship between recent life hassles and adolescent mental health (operationalized as symptoms of depression, anxiety and stress). Method: Data collected from a sample of 317 Australian high school students comprised an inventory of recent life hassles, measures of dispositional...
Scientific knowledge of human health continues to grow substantially through publication in empirical journals. These journals, which serve as the warehouses of scientific knowledge, continue to publish vast amounts of empirical information. This abundance of information, which promotes an understanding of and advances in human health, is also a precursor of information overload that can result...
Context Patients who have received solid organ transplants continue to experience a myriad of complex symptoms related to their underlying disease and to chronic immunosuppression that reduce the quality of life. Beneficial non-pharmacologic therapies to address these symptoms have not been established in the transplant population. Objective Assess the efficacy of Mindfulness-Based Stress...