This study examines the effects of hope and mindfulness on the relationship between life experiences and resilience, as well as the direct relationships among these constructs. Participants were 537 undergraduates who were taking online courses at Texas A&M University. Most participants were traditionally-aged and female. Quantitative self-report measures for each construct were administered online via SurveyMonkey. The small, positive relationship between life events and resilience approached, but did not reach, statistical significance, and hope but not mindfulness was found to moderate this relationship. Correlations were significant, positive, and linear between resilience and hope (r = .57, p < .01), resilience and mindfulness (r = .50, p less than .01), and hope and mindfulness (r = .44, p less than .01). Suggestions for clinical interventions aimed at increasing resilience by increasing hope and mindfulness are provided

Thesis (M.S.W.)--Smith College School for Social Work, Northampton, Mass., 2010. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (p. 64-67).

Problemet med dysfunktionella tankar hos elitidrottare har länge varit känt. Mindfulness har på senare tid både testats och diskuterats som en strategi för att komma tillrätta med detta problem (Gardner &amp; Moore, 2012; Birrer, Röthlin &amp; Morgan, 2012). Syftet med den befintliga studien var att med hjälp av en pathanalys pröva delar av Birrer et al.’s (2012) föreslagna modell genom att vid tre mätningar undersöka sambanden mellan dispositionell mindfulness, en påverkansmekanism (ältande) och två idrottspsykologiska färdigheter (self-efficacy och återhämtning). Som underlag för studien användes en enkät som sammanlagt 65 idrottare varav 33 kvinnor och 32 män besvarade. Medelåldern var 22,78 år (SD=4,66). Resultatet av pathanalysen visade att dispositionell mindfulness vid mättillfälle 1 var en signifikant prediktor för ältande vid mättillfälle 2 och att ältande i sin tur var en signifikant prediktor för återhämtning vid mättillfälle 3. En korrelationsanalys visade även att återhämtning hade ett signifikant samband med tävlingsprestation. Det kan utifrån den befintliga studiens resultat konstateras att den del av Birrer et al.’s (2012) modell som avser dispositionell mindfulness, påverkansmekanismen ältande och den idrottspsykologiska färdigheten återhämtning stämmer. Idrottares self-efficacy verkar dock inte påverkas av hur mycket de ältar. / The problem with dysfunctional thoughts among athletes is well known. In recent years midfulness has been examined and discussed as a strategy to solve this problem (Gardner &amp; Moore, 2012; Birrer, Morgan &amp; Röthlin, 2012). The aim of this study was to examine parts of Birrer et al.‘s (2012) model by measure dispositional mindfulness, one mechanism of action (rumination) and two psychological skills (self-efficacy and recovery). As a foundation for the study a survey was used which were answered by 65 athletes, 33 women and 32 men. The average age was 22,78 years (SD=4,66). The result of the path analysis showed that dispositionell mindfulness was a significant predictor for rumination and rumination was a significant predictor for recovery. A correlation analysis also showed that recovery had a significant correlation with performance at competition. From the result of this study it can be concluded that the part of Birrer et al.’s (2012) model which refers to dispositional mindfulness, rumination and recovery is valid. Athlete’s self-efficacy doesn’t seem to be effected by their rumination.

Abstract Integrated mental training is a method that entails a systematic and long-term training of mental processes (thoughts, images, emotions) that aims to enhance performance as well as gratify feelings and improve thought processes. This training develops an alternative system of control by using substitute state of consciousness and self-hypnosis. The method is concerned with both mindfulness and performance approaches, which is crucial in order to feel and function better. The intent of this study is to highlight the experience of the different steps of integrated mental training to gain an understanding of how, where, and when changes occur. To achieve the objective of this study, a qualitative empirical method was used. As far as analysis is concerned, phenomenology analytic approach was adopted. The study participants were six long-term sick listed women. During the eight meetings they were introduced to the process and in between the meetings they performed the training using self-instructor CD. Their experience of the training was recorded through the diary entries upon which the study’s analysis was based. The finding shows that it takes different time-spans to reach the different stages and that large positive experience of change occur during the first steps. This suggests that a mindfulness approach is instrumental in feelings enhancement. Further, the first part of the mental conceptions gives strengthened self-esteem and increased faith in oneself. There is no illuminating finding with regard to self-creation of mental representations, which may be due to the short training time for this group.

Mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) such as Mindfulness-based Stress Reduction and Mindfulness-based Cognitive Therapy utilise a group format. Experts in the field of mindfulness endorse the group as beneficial to participants and professional practice literature promotes the need for mindfulness teachers to develop competence in group skills. However, the role of the group in MBIs has been largely overlooked in empirical research to date and the utility of existing group theory in this area is unconvincing. The current study presents a grounded-theory of the role of the group in MBIs. The theory was developed from semi-structured interviews conducted with mindfulness students, teachers and trainers (N=12) exploring their experiences and views related to the MBI group format. Through analysis, three higher-order categories emerged from the data describing five stages of group experiences, four group-based tasks the teacher attended to from a position of ‘embodiment’, and the impact of the MBI group. Findings were situated within existing group theory, facilitating differentiation between generic and MBI specific group factors. The sense of connection developed through non-verbal group meditation, the multi-layered experience of normalization, and the grounding of the teacher’s group-based responses in the embodiment of mindfulness, emerged as unique MBI group factors. The implications for clinical practice, research and theory are discussed.

Mindfulness-based interventions reduce depressive symptoms and rumination, and enhance mindfulness in adults; this non-randomised controlled feasibility study aimed to determine whether these conclusions apply to young people, and whether mindfulness and rumination mediate the effect on depressive symptoms. Participants aged 12-16 received a nine-week universal mindfulness intervention in schools delivered by trained teachers (intervention group, N = 256) or their regular school curriculum (control group, N = 266). Intervention schools were matched to control schools on key variables (publicly-funded versus private, mainstream versus special needs). Young people who received the intervention reported fewer depressive symptoms post-intervention relative to controls, which was maintained at three-month follow-up. Mindfulness and rumination were unchanged immediately after the intervention, however by follow-up, intervention participants were significantly more mindful and less likely to ruminate than controls. The extent to which young people practiced mindfulness was negatively correlated with depressive symptoms at post-intervention and follow-up, positively correlated with mindfulness at post-intervention and follow-up, and positively correlated with rumination at follow-up. This universal mindfulness intervention shows promise for reducing depressive symptoms, reducing rumination and increasing mindfulness in young people, however further research is warranted, particularly regarding the mechanisms of change.

Despite the growing interest in the general public and popular press about the scientific research into mindfulness meditation (e.g. Pickert, 2014), several critiques of this research have been published in the past few years outlining methodological flaws in many published studies on the topic (Goyal et al., 2014; Ospina et al., 2007). One potential way to improve methodology in this field would be to find better ways of measuring skill at meditation, giving researchers an ability to compare more advanced practitioners to those who are more novice. A total of 69 participants were recruited. Pilot data were collected from 33 participants and analyzed using exploratory methods to assess whether any self-report measures of mindfulness practice might correlate with any physiological variables thought to possibly reflect a dimension of skill at meditation. Participants spent a night in the sleep lab, and prior to their sleep study spent six minutes in a baseline condition followed by six minutes in a meditation condition, and differences were recorded on a number of physiological measures. Correlational analyses revealed that, of the physiological and self-report measures, six were correlated with other measures, and principal component analysis found 2 factors, each with three components. 36 additional participants were then recruited in an attempt to determine whether these two factors would replicate, and this latter group participated only in the meditation protocol. Both factors were largely replicated independently in the second sample and remained stable collapsing the two groups together. Factor 1 combined an increase in both alpha and theta power centrally and occipitally between baseline and meditation with self-reported mindfulness practice, and Factor 2 combined the inverse of the Brief Symptom Inventory, the Mindful Attention and Awareness Scale, and the change in respiration between baseline and meditation.

The presence of stress is normative for individuals, and it is how one copes with stress that is important towards a person's well-being. In stressful situations, one's cognitive appraisal of and emotional reactions to a challenge are based on whether it is perceived as a threat to one's beliefs and goals. Mindfulness meditation training (MMT) is a set of coping strategies that has demonstrated beneficial effects for adults in reducing stress, enhancing wellbeing, and promoting cognitive efficiency. This procedure incorporates breathing techniques to regulate physiological responses and teaches the person to appraise moment to moment sensations, feelings and events as transitory, positive or neutral to assist in emotional regulation. In the past decade, research has suggested that MMT is appropriate and effective for children and adolescents, although most studies have been with clinical populations. The present study examined the relative effectiveness of MMT in stress reduction, and in promoting the mindfulness and well-being of adolescents enrolled in an International Baccalaureate (IB) program. Twelfth-grade students self-selected to participate in either an eight-week MMT course or to complete surveys as part of a no-treatment control group. Ratings for perceived stress, mindfulness, and well-being were collected from the MMT and the control groups at pre-intervention, post-intervention, and at one week prior to admission of high stakes IB exams. A repeated measures 2 X 2 ANOVA was conducted for each of the three scales. Within the repeated measures ANOVA, the interaction between the factor of treatment/no treatment and the within-subjects variable "point in time" (before training, after training, and prior to the exam) was found to be statistically significant. Subsequent post hoc testing showed that the significant interaction effects occurred only at pre-test for the three measures of perceived stress, mindfulness and well-being, indicating that the groups were very different to begin with. These findings were discussed with respect to the current literature on MMT. Future directions for research in this area were also discussed, as were the limitations of the study.

Despite concerted efforts to eradicate violence against women and challenge victim-blaming attitudes towards survivors of sexual assault, women continue to be sexually victimized and encounter negative and accusatory reactions by family, friends, and society at large. For many survivors, the consequences are internalizing blame and feelings of shame, which has been shown to be related to increased psychological distress, self-destructive coping mechanisms, depression, generalized anxiety, and post-traumatic stress (Arata, 1999; Davis &amp; Breslau, 1994; Feiring, Taska, &amp; Lewis, 2002; Frazier, 1990, 2000; Frazier &amp; Schauben, 1994; Wyatt et al., 1990). New research in the area of self-compassion suggests that this way of self-relating can counter shame (Gilbert, 2005) and serve as a resiliency factor for coping with daily stressors (Leary, Tate, Adams, Allen, &amp; Hancock, 2007) and contribute to well-being (Neff, 2003a). No study has yet empirically evaluated self-compassion among survivors of trauma, nor more specifically, victims of sexual assault. The present study investigated the relationships between self-compassion and various indicators of psychological health that have been associated with posttrauma adjustment. One hundred and forty-one women in North America who experienced a sexual assault in the past 5 years (aged 18 to 61, M age = 27 years) completed measures assessing trauma history (sexual trauma history, childhood trauma and stressful life experiences), posttrauma adjustment (psychological distress, negative posttraumatic cognitions, and shame), self-compassion, self-criticism, and life satisfaction. The results of the study showed that self-compassion was significantly negatively related to psychological distress, negative posttraumatic cognitions, shame and self-criticism, and was positively related to life satisfaction. Hierarchical linear regressions revealed that when controlling for earlier childhood trauma and other stressful life experiences, self-compassion was a strong and significant predictor, explaining between 19 to 42% of the variance in psychological distress, negative posttraumatic cognitions, shame, and self-criticism. Comparing groups based on severity of sexual assault revealed that women who experienced attempted rape reported significantly higher levels of self-criticism compared with women who experienced sexual coercion. These findings bolster recent studies that equate self-compassion with psychological resilience. The negative relationships revealed between self-compassion and measures reflecting posttrauma adjustment and self-criticism, along with the positive association with life satisfaction clearly demonstrate validity in the pursuit of self-compassion as an important psychological construct that may help women recover from sexual trauma.

Despite concerted efforts to eradicate violence against women and challenge victim-blaming attitudes towards survivors of sexual assault, women continue to be sexually victimized and encounter negative and accusatory reactions by family, friends, and society at large. For many survivors, the consequences are internalizing blame and feelings of shame, which has been shown to be related to increased psychological distress, self-destructive coping mechanisms, depression, generalized anxiety, and post-traumatic stress (Arata, 1999; Davis &amp; Breslau, 1994; Feiring, Taska, &amp; Lewis, 2002; Frazier, 1990, 2000; Frazier &amp; Schauben, 1994; Wyatt et al., 1990). New research in the area of self-compassion suggests that this way of self-relating can counter shame (Gilbert, 2005) and serve as a resiliency factor for coping with daily stressors (Leary, Tate, Adams, Allen, &amp; Hancock, 2007) and contribute to well-being (Neff, 2003a). No study has yet empirically evaluated self-compassion among survivors of trauma, nor more specifically, victims of sexual assault. The present study investigated the relationships between self-compassion and various indicators of psychological health that have been associated with posttrauma adjustment. One hundred and forty-one women in North America who experienced a sexual assault in the past 5 years (aged 18 to 61, M age = 27 years) completed measures assessing trauma history (sexual trauma history, childhood trauma and stressful life experiences), posttrauma adjustment (psychological distress, negative posttraumatic cognitions, and shame), self-compassion, self-criticism, and life satisfaction. The results of the study showed that self-compassion was significantly negatively related to psychological distress, negative posttraumatic cognitions, shame and self-criticism, and was positively related to life satisfaction. Hierarchical linear regressions revealed that when controlling for earlier childhood trauma and other stressful life experiences, self-compassion was a strong and significant predictor, explaining between 19 to 42% of the variance in psychological distress, negative posttraumatic cognitions, shame, and self-criticism. Comparing groups based on severity of sexual assault revealed that women who experienced attempted rape reported significantly higher levels of self-criticism compared with women who experienced sexual coercion. These findings bolster recent studies that equate self-compassion with psychological resilience. The negative relationships revealed between self-compassion and measures reflecting posttrauma adjustment and self-criticism, along with the positive association with life satisfaction clearly demonstrate validity in the pursuit of self-compassion as an important psychological construct that may help women recover from sexual trauma.