Acceptance in Cognitive Behavioral Psychotherapies: Different or the Same?

Acceptance is a key construct in both rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT) and acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT). The objectives of this study were to assess and compare the properties of ACT acceptance with those of REBT acceptance in predicting emotions. A sample of 112 subjects, comprising different educational and occupational status, completed three measures of acceptance (REBT and ACT), two of mindfulness, as well as completing depression and anxiety scales. Both ACT acceptance as process and REBT acceptance could predict significant ACT acceptance as outcome. Mindfulness as a trait also predicted the level of ACT outcome acceptance as well as the level of REBT acceptance, but mindfulness as process predicted only ACT outcome acceptance. The results show that REBT acceptance, ACT acceptance and mindfulness can explain anxiety and depression in different ways. The results show that the difference between ACT acceptance and REBT acceptance primary concern the process of acceptance, most likely due to the underlying cognitive processing. The outcome acceptance and emotional level are similar in the two conditions. Future research should employ multiple cognitive measurements.     

Do deficits in mindfulness underlie borderline personality features and core difficulties?

The current study investigated whether deficits in mindfulness (the awareness, attention, and acceptance of the present moment) can account for variability in borderline personality (BPD) features and characteristic difficulties in emotion regulation, interpersonal effectiveness, and impulsivity. Structural equation modeling and hierarchical regressions were utilized to examine the associations of trait mindfulness with BPD features, interpersonal problem-solving, impulsive and passive emotion-regulation strategies, and neuroticism in a sample of young adults (N = 342). As hypothesized, mindfulness was related inversely to BPD features and core areas of difficulty, and these associations continued even when controlling for neuroticism. Additionally, mindfulness deficits continued to predict borderline features even when interpersonal effectiveness, passive and impulsive emotion-regulation, and neuroticism were controlled. It is concluded that deficits in mindfulness may be integral to BPD features. Difficulties with attention, awareness, and acceptance of internal and external experience appear to explain borderline pathology even when controlling for problems with negative affectivity, behavioral dyscontrol, and emotional and interpersonal dysfunction--which have been described as definitional of this disorder. Thus, attention to mindfulness deficits may enhance clinical formulation of BPD symptomatology, as well as provide a vital component of effective BPD treatment.     

Mindfulness Based Interventions for Youth

Application of mindfulness based interventions for youth is growing exponentially within clinical and educational settings. Proponents emphasize benefits in reduction of a wide range of psychopathology including internalizing and externalizing disorders, as well as enhancement of functioning and skills in attentional focus and concentration, emotion regulation, social and academic performance, adaptive coping, frustration tolerance, self-control, and self-esteem. Findings to date are encouraging, though research design reflects the nascent nature of the field and continues to be insufficient to confirm treatment efficacy or mechanisms of change. This article is aimed at providing the clinical practitioner with a review of the current state of the field with regard to application of mindfulness for youth, placing it in context of the broader history of the CBT movement. Specifically mindfulness based stress reduction, mindfulness based cognitive behavioral therapy, acceptance and commitment therapy, and dialectical behavior therapy treatments for youth are critically reviewed, and mindfulness as a technique and as a unifying mechanism of action in “third-wave” youth psychotherapies discussed. Developmental considerations are highlighted, and the application of mindfulness as a universal preventative health measure versus tertiary treatment intervention examined, with consideration for future directions.     

Can Acceptance,Mindfulness, and Self-Compassion Be Learned by Smartphone Apps? A Systematic and Meta-Analytic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials

The potential health benefits of acceptance, mindfulness, and self-compassion are well-documented. However, interventions that teach these principles typically rely on face-to-face delivery, which can limit their dissemination. Delivering these interventions through smartphone apps could help overcome this. This meta-analysis examined whether principles of acceptance, mindfulness, and self-compassion can be learned through smartphone apps. Twenty-seven randomized controlled trials were included. Smartphone apps that included acceptance and/or mindfulness components resulted in significantly higher levels of acceptance/mindfulness than comparison conditions (k = 33; g = 0.29; 95% CI = 0.17, 0.41). These effects were moderated by the type of comparison and whether reminders to engage were offered. Smartphone apps also resulted in significantly lower levels of psychological distress than comparisons (k = 22; g = −0.32; 95% CI = −0.48, −0.16). Meta-regression revealed a negative relationship between the effect sizes for mindfulness/acceptance and the effect sizes for distress. Smartphone apps produced significantly greater increases in self-compassion than comparisons (k = 9; g = 0.31; 95% CI = 0.07, 0.56), although the quality of RCTs in this analysis was poor. Findings suggest that principles of acceptance, mindfulness, and self-compassion may be learned through cheap, easily accessible, and low-intensity interventions delivered via smartphone apps. However, the quality of available evidence is poor, as low risk of bias was noted in few trials (18%) and the observed effects were likely explained by a digital placebo.     

Mindfulness and acceptance are associated with exercise maintenance in YMCA exercisers

Although most U.S. adults have initiated an exercise program at some time, only a fraction are able to maintain consistent exercise. Instead, research suggests that intermittent exercise is commonplace among U.S. adults, underscoring the importance of identifying factors associated with consistent exercise at a level that promotes health and long-term maintenance of this activity. We proposed a theoretical model in which mindfulness and acceptance may promote exercise initiation and maintenance. Mindfulness, acceptance, and suppression were examined as a function of exercise status in 266 YMCA exercisers. Those who were successful at maintaining exercise tended to score higher on measures of mindfulness and acceptance, and lower on measures of suppression. Findings are discussed in light of our proposed theoretical model in which exercisers having greater mindfulness and acceptance are less reactive; responding with more balanced appraisals to threats to their exercise regimen which in turn promotes increased exercise maintenance. Future studies should utilize longitudinal design to examine causal relationships between variables.     

The effects of a self‐observation‐based meditation intervention on acceptance or rejection of the other

Research has demonstrated the many benefits of mindfulness training programmes for individual health and well‐being. This study, however, explored whether mindfulness training might have effects on intergroup interaction. We tested the effects of a self‐observation‐based mindfulness course on several dimensions of acceptance of the other (i.e., non‐judgement, non‐reaction and observation). An initial study test a mindfulness course training (N = 197). A second study then tested its effect on intergroup relationships (N = 120). A control group was used in both studies, and the subjects were tested before and after the course. Results indicate that participation in the course favoured intergroup acceptance of the other and suggest that mindfulness training represents a useful educational method for reducing social discrimination.     

Intensive mindfulness training-related changes in cognitive and emotional experience

This study examined the role of intensive mindfulness training on changes in day-to-day experiential processing, psychological symptoms, resilience, and well-being in two groups of community adults (N = 69). Using both quasi-experimental and longitudinal methods, the study found that intensive training, operationalized as 10–12 hours of formal mindfulness practice per day for 1 month, was significantly related to increases in training-specific experiential processing capacities, namely trait mindfulness and decentering (reperceiving), in comparison to pre–post-training wait-list controls. In both training groups combined, mindfulness, decentering, and acceptance increased over the pre-training to 1-month follow-up period. Intensive mindfulness training was also related to declines in anxiety and enhanced both subjective well-being and self-compassion from pre-training to follow-up in the two training groups. Finally, increases in trait mindfulness and acceptance were related to improvements in psychological symptoms, well-being, and resilience. Future directions for this novel area of mindfulness research are discussed.     

Mindfulness in the Treatment of Suicidal Individuals

Suicidal behavior is exhibited by a diverse population of individuals and spans many diagnostic categories. In order to develop effective prevention and treatment programs, it is important to identify transdiagnostic processes that impact the many pathways to suicidality, are amenable to intervention, and affect clinical outcomes when modified. A growing body of data suggests that experiential avoidance, or the tendency to escape or avoid unwanted psychological experiences, even when such efforts cause harm, may represent one such universal process. This article reviews theory and evidence that support mindfulness and psychological acceptance as a means to target experiential avoidance in suicidal clients and thereby reduce the risk of suicide. The article also provides two case examples of the application of mindfulness to suicidality and discusses how mindfulness may help clinicians in managing the stress associated with treating suicidal clients.     

Mindfulness and Acceptance in the Treatment of Disordered Eating

Mindfulness and acceptance-based approaches to the treatment of clinical problems are accruing substantial empirical support. This article examines the application of these approaches to disordered eating. Theoretical bases for the importance of mindfulness and acceptance in the treatment of eating problems are reviewed, and interventions for eating problems that incorporate mindfulness and acceptance skills are briefly described. Empirical data are presented from a pilot study of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy adapted for treatment of binge eating.     

Acceptance and Mindfulness Techniques as Applied to Refugee and Ethnic Minority Populations With PTSD: Examples From "Culturally Adapted CBT"

In this article we illustrate how we utilize acceptance and mindfulness techniques in our treatment (Culturally Adapted CBT, or CA-CBT) for traumatized refugees and ethnic minority populations. We present a Nodal Network Model (NNM) of Affect to explain the treatment's emphasis on body-centered mindfulness techniques and its focus on psychological flexibility. We explain the definition of mindfulness that guides our treatment, and we outline a typology of mindfulness states and show how many of the techniques in our treatment can be analyzed by these categories. We argue that acceptance and mindfulness are therapeutic for refugees and minority populations for several reasons. These include their increasing psychological flexibility, decreasing somatic distress, decreasing rumination, serving as emotion regulation techniques, decreasing the attentional bias to threat, and forming part of a new adaptive processing mode (which in CA-CBT centers on psychological flexibility). We describe the specific ways we teach acceptance and mindfulness with Latino and Southeast Asian refugee populations and present case examples of the treatment of a traumatized Latino and Cambodian patient.     

正念对压力的影响-基于监测与接纳理论

压力是对潜在威胁性事件产生的生理与心理反应。正念通过专注当下并保持接纳的态度缓解压力。然而以往关于正念缓解压力的研究并没有明确具体的机制,且忽略了正念影响压力过程中的复杂性与多样性。监控与接纳理论通过解构监控与接纳成分,更加清晰地呈现了正念的作用机制,因此本文依据监控与接纳理论,梳理正念对压力的影响效果及其心理神经机制。未来的研究在探讨正念通过监控与接纳成分影响压力的同时应重点关注监控作用效果与机制;重视压力刺激与压力评估的重要性;设计新的实验范式,直接探究正念监控与接纳对压力影响的心理与神经机制。     

Delineating the contributions of sustained attention and working memory to individual differences in mindfulness

Mindfulness can be deconstructed into two constituent components: present-moment awareness and acceptance. Attention and working memory are theorized to contribute to individual differences in trait mindfulness, although the precise relationship among these constructs remains unclear. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the association of neurocognitive indices of attention and working memory with a bidimensional trait measure of mindfulness. Fifty-five psychiatrically and neurologically healthy adults completed the Conners Continuous Performance Test, Penn Letter N-back Test, and Philadelphia Mindfulness Scale. Results indicated that present-moment awareness was associated with a response speed variability measure of sustained attention, whereas acceptance was more strongly linked to working memory efficiency, even after accounting for general intellectual ability. These findings suggest that sustained attention and working memory capacities may differentially subserve individual differences in present-moment awareness and acceptance, thereby illuminating our understanding of the cognitive mechanisms which may underlie trait mindfulness.     

Social Validity Assessment of Mindfulness Education and Practices Among High School Students

The authors describe social validity assessment of mindfulness education and practices among high school students (N = 84) participating in a 10-week instructional program. The participants rated their satisfaction with and acceptance of several program components, content areas, and outcomes, as well as their engagement in specific mindfulness practices. Nearly all of the participants rated the program favorably, reported many beneficial effects, and anticipated future use of mindfulness in their lives. They did not routinely perform voluntary formal guided meditations beyond the classroom but did engage in informal mindfulness practices preceding certain activities (e.g., preparing for a test, athletic competition, performance event) and going to sleep at night. The authors discuss these findings and the implications for designing school-based mindfulness education programs.     

An integrated mindfulness and acceptance-based program for young elite female basketball players: Exploratory study of how it works and for whom it works best

In order to better understand how an integrated mindfulness and acceptance-based intervention works and for whom it works best, study objectives were to examine (i) the trajectories of mindfulness skills and performance-related outcomes during the intervention, and athletes’ perceptions of the impact of the intervention; and (ii) the potential moderating effects of personality characteristics on changes in targeted variables associated with the intervention. The sample consisted of 40 young elite female basketball players (M = 16.33, SD = 0.75 years) from three incoming groups at the French Federal Basketball Center over a 3-year period. All players participated in a 15-week Mindfulness BasketBall Integrated program. They completed online questionnaires measuring personality traits 10 months before the intervention, as well as pre-, mid- and post-intervention measurements of mindfulness skills, intensity and directional interpretation of stress, and performance satisfaction. They also participated in semi-structured social validation interviews conducted one month after the intervention. The results of the multilevel growth curve (MGCA) and thematic analyses revealed how the mindfulness skills and performance-related outcomes evolved over the course of the intervention and how these changes were perceived by the athletes. Specifically, the MGCA showed significant linear increases in acceptance, positive stress direction, and performance satisfaction. The complementary social validation data indicated perceived improvements in mindfulness skills and performance. The MGCA also showed that baseline personality traits moderated the effects of the program on acceptance and experience of stress. These findings may be used to inform the design of more effective integrated mindfulness and acceptance-based interventions.     

Mindfulness and self-acceptance

The present article will focus on the cognitive theory of mindfulness and its importance in achieving unconditional self-acceptance. The goal of the mindful perspective is to increase cognitive flexibility and to thereby increase behavioral flexibility and the ability to adapt to one’s current environment in a meaningful manner. Empirical evidence spanning four decades attests to the beneficial effects of a mindful vs. mindless perspective. The article will focus on the following aspects of mindfulness as they apply to self-acceptance: the importance of authenticity, the tyranny of evaluation, the benefits of mistakes, the mindlessness of social comparison, the trap of rigid categories, and the acceptance of self as a mindful choice. The article concludes with a number of mindfulness applications geared toward enhancing self-acceptance.     

The Effect of a Brief Mindfulness Training on Distress Tolerance and Stress Reactivity

Poor distress tolerance (DT) is considered an underlying facet of anxiety, depression, and a number of other psychological disorders. Mindfulness may help to increase DT by fostering an attitude of acceptance or nonjudgment toward distressing experiences. Accordingly, the present study examined the effects of a brief mindfulness training on tolerance of different types of distress, and tested whether trait mindfulness moderates the effect of such training. Undergraduates (n = 107) naïve to mindfulness completed a measure of trait mindfulness and underwent a series of stress tasks (cold pressor, hyperventilation challenge, neutralization task) before and after completing a 15-minute mindfulness training or a no-instruction control in which participants listened to relaxing music. Participants in the mindfulness condition demonstrated greater task persistence on the hyperventilation task compared to the control group, as well as a decreased urge to neutralize the effects of writing an upsetting sentence. No effect on distress ratings during the tasks were found. Overall trait mindfulness did not significantly moderate task persistence, but those with lower scores on the act with awareness facet of mindfulness demonstrated greater relative benefit of mindfulness training on the hyperventilation challenge. Mediation analyses revealed significant indirect effects of mindfulness training on cold pressor task persistence and urges to neutralize through the use of the nonjudge and nonreact facets of mindfulness. These results suggest that a brief mindfulness training can increase DT without affecting the subjective experience of distress.     

正念是什么——从正念内涵研究发展角度的思考

"正念是什么"是正念研究中的基本问题,也是长期困扰研究者的难题,造成此困境的重要原因是正念跨越了佛学与心理学两种语境。在正念内涵研究历程中,研究者们先后试图以"去神秘化"、"去语境化"及"整合化"来解决跨语境所造成的问题。本研究认为:正念为多维概念,其内涵的复杂性决定了研究者对正念的认识并非静态的判断,而是逐步成熟的过程;应深入整合佛学与心理学语境,以发展的视角看待正念。     

Differential Relationships of Light and Darker Forms of Humor with Mindfulness

This study proposes two links between facets of mindfulness and different forms of humor: First, the common benevolence should link mindfulness positively to light forms of humor and negatively to darker forms of humor. Second, similar cognitive mechanisms should underlie both mindfulness and humor ability (humor detection, comprehension, and production). Third, both are malleable, and we hypothesize that fostering humor and mindfulness may mutually influence each other, leading to innovative and practical interventions for settings such as the workplace. In three studies, the relationship of humor and mindfulness as outlined in the Humor Mindfulness Relationship Model was investigated. In Studies 1 and 2, the relationship of different forms of humor and mindfulness was investigated in a sample of health care professionals and a broad online sample. In Study 3, the effect of a mindfulness intervention on humor as a character strength was investigated, giving preliminary insights into the mutual malleability of both. Results confirmed the positive relationship among light forms of humor and mindfulness as well as negative relationships of darker forms of humor with mindfulness. The mindfulness intervention fostered humor as a character strength. These results indicate that humor and mindfulness may be fruitfully combined in positive interventions as well as in the vocational setting. Moreover, the results suggest initial evidence for the Humor Mindfulness Relationship Model.

     

特质正念与控制点调节日常生活中知觉压力对消极情绪的影响

考察日常生活中知觉压力对消极情绪的动态影响,检验特质正念的调节作用,并进一步探索正念的调节作用是否在不同控制点的个体中存在差异。共有95名在校大学生完成正念注意觉知量表（MAAS）,罗特控制点量表（LOCS）,并通过动态评估的方式,完成每天2次,持续14天的在日常生活情境中针对知觉压力和消极情绪的密集型追踪测量。多层线性模型结果表明：（1）在个体内水平,个体某一时刻的知觉压力可以显著预测个体下一时刻的消极情绪;（2）个体的正念水平越高,日常生活中知觉压力对消极情绪的预测力越低;（3）个体越倾向于内控,日常生活中知觉压力对消极情绪的预测力越低;（4）个体越倾向于外控,正念对日常生活中知觉压力影响消极情绪的调节作用越强。本研究验证了正念对日常生活中压力反应的保护作用,并提示外控者在面临压力时更有可能从正念中获益。