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Computer-supported mindfulness: Evaluation of a mobile thought distancing application on naive meditators
Abstract
The last two decades have seen a constantly increasing interest in mindfulness, due to its positive effects on health and well-being. Recently, a number of mobile applications aimed at supporting people in practicing mindfulness techniques have appeared, but their efficacy has not been formally evaluated yet. In this paper, we first introduce the reader to mindfulness techniques, traditional as well as computer-based. Then, we propose and evaluate a mobile application (called AEON) aimed at helping users in practicing thought distancing, i.e. a mindfulness technique that requires one not to react in response to his/her thoughts but to be aware of them and observe them while they go away. AEON allows the user to enter his/her thoughts and visualize them as written in ink on a parchment placed under water. By touching the screen, the user can interact with the water and produce waves that progressively dissolve each written thought. We evaluate AEON on a sample of naive meditators (i.e. people with no or minimal experience with meditation), contrasting it with two traditional thought distancing techniques that are not computer-based. The first traditional technique requires users to mentally visualize their thoughts as printed on clouds and observe them as they pass by, while the second requires users to write their thoughts on cards, then pick up the cards one at a time, look at them and toss them into a wastepaper basket. AEON obtained better results in terms of achieved mindfulness, perceived level of difficulty and degree of pleasantness. Since practicing mindfulness tends to be difficult for naive meditators, these results suggest that AEON can be a novel and effective way to help them approach mindfulness.
... Smartphones are ideal for tracking individuals' psychological and behavioral responses [3]. For example, smartphones can be used to track one's sleep behaviors [4] or to help users with practicing mindfulness skills in their daily life [5]. e smartphone is also an ideal platform to plan and implement information systems designed for learning or training [6]. ...
... Behavioral Studies. Some researchers have employed mobile-phone-based tools to track and share behavior data [40], such as stress and sleep behavior [4,41,42], mindfulness and worry [5,43], movement behaviors [44], and interpersonal behaviors [45][46][47]. Some recent review studies demonstrated the efficacy of smartphone-based applications in intervention contexts [48,49]. ...
... Additionally, psychologists can explore the interpersonal and emotional factors of depressed individuals and caregivers with the assistance of technology. Cahittro and Vianello [5,43] developed a mobile mindfulness app (AEON) to assess participants' mindfulness and user experience with the app. Several participants in this study experienced decentering from their worries when using the app. ...
Smartphones are ideal for tracking individuals' behavioral responses. Traditional laboratory-based psychological trials aimed at training cognitive functions face a problem when participants cannot finish their tasks within a scheduled time. In this paper, we developed a self-training system that helps people to enhance their cognitive functions through mental exercises. The system utilizes the advantages of mobile computing and Internet connection. Participants can finish their mental exercises no matter where they are and can send the results back to the data server. Administrators can track all participants' status on a web-based system. This study investigates in situ the 20-session use of a mobile application. The results reveal that the users significantly enhanced their level of executive functions. The dropout rate was very small. This application, which uses a cloud data server, makes it more efficient and cost-effective in conducting psychological training programs. The proposed system provides a basic smartphone-based system for psychological trials and can be further improved by combining other techniques such as speech recognition and data-mining techniques.
... A growing number of technologies, such as Mindfulness-Based Mobile Application (MBMA), have been created to support and enhance individuals' mindfulness [19]. However, most of the commercial technologies designed for mindfulness are focused on guided meditation [5,19,23,34] and have overlooked other dimensions of mindfulness as we discuss here. In addition, only limited research has investigated the limitations and potential uses of mindfulness design space [5,19,23,27,33,34]. ...
... However, most of the commercial technologies designed for mindfulness are focused on guided meditation [5,19,23,34] and have overlooked other dimensions of mindfulness as we discuss here. In addition, only limited research has investigated the limitations and potential uses of mindfulness design space [5,19,23,27,33,34]. ...
... While most applications focus on guided meditation, a few consider other aspects of mindfulness. For example, AEON [5] is a smartphone application that aims to enhance users' thought-distancing ability, defined as a technique that "requires individuals not to react to their thoughts, but to be aware of them and observe them while they go away." ...
Despite recent popularity of mindfulness smartphone applications and an interest in incorporating mindfulness into new technologies, existing applications tend to focus mainly on its meditation dimension. In this paper, we review existing literature on digital and traditional mindfulness to map its design space and synthesize the findings with our prior research on designing for aesthetic needs. We identify “recollection” and “evaluation” as two important dimensions of mindfulness that have not yet been incorporated into popular digital tools. Through a two-phase design activity over 16 months, we developed ColorAway, an innovative tool that promotes mindfulness through interaction with modified travel photos. Recruited participants evaluated ColorAway and offered unique insights into how mindfulness can be better designed. We also discuss how the process of designing for mindfulness can possibly inform the design of personal technology. This research is part of a larger study that builds on scholarly research and theories with the goal of designing interactive technologies for solo travelers.
... Further, mindfulness yoga relies on physical postures to learn mindfulness through bodily sensations. Apart from these techniques, participants should also be engaged in informal mindfulness practices in nontherapeutic settings that are based on maintaining full awareness in ordinary activities in order to sustain mindfulness practices in everyday life (Chittaro and Vianello 2014). Indeed, many other mindfulness-based psychotherapeutic interventions also emphasize mindful activities in everyday life, such as mindful walking or eating. ...
... This market growth is coupled with an increasing research stream that has set to evaluate the effectiveness of mindfulness applications. The studies reported mixed results in achieved mindfulness (Chittaro and Vianello 2014). However, the meditation mindfulness trend persists. ...
... Over the years, an important support to Mindfulness has come from the ICT world, which provided several technological solutions oriented to support users to approach the meditation practice and to increase retention, affection and motivation to it. In the first computer-supported Mindfulness era, computers were used to deliver and teach Mindfulness techniques, simply presenting them to users without providing interactive practices and immersive solutions [8]. Initially, the clinical field was the most explored, including the treatment of stress syndrome [9], chronic pain [10,11], irritable bowel syndrome [12], and depression in epileptic subjects [13]. ...
... -General support to the practice: apps offering guided meditations and timer tools to remember or timing the practice [22,23,24,25,26,27]; -Thought Distancing Techniques: working on reaction to thoughts, teaching to become aware and simply observing them as they go away [8,28,29,30,31]; -Breathing Techniques: the user is asked to pay attention to his own breathing, for example, touching the screen with each breathing cycle [32]; -Neurofeedback Support: used in combination with the EEG Muse headset and offering the mental state feedback for modulating the meditation experience [33]; ...
Therapeutic effects of Mindfulness meditation practices in clinical interventions, specifically in the treatment of stress, anxiety, depression, chronic and acute pain are scientifically well founded. Mindfulness is increasingly being supported by technology and among various interventions immersive VR seems rather peculiar due to its ability to improve decentering and interoceptive awareness. A systematic review on Virtual Reality supported Mindfulness is currently being published. In this paper, some preliminary results of this review are presented, also providing a brief discussion about a possible evolutionary technological trend, on the basis of the input and output perceptual domains exploited.
... Further, mindfulness yoga relies on physical postures to learn mindfulness through bodily sensations. Apart from these techniques, participants should also be engaged in informal mindfulness practices in non-therapeutic settings that are based on maintaining full awareness in ordinary activities in order to sustain mindfulness practices in everyday life (Chittaro and Vianello 2014). Indeed, many other mindfulness-based psychotherapeutic interventions also emphasize mindful activities in everyday life, such as mindful walking or eating. ...
... This market growth is coupled with an increasing research stream that has set to evaluate the effectiveness of mindfulness applications. The studies reported mixed results in achieved mindfulness (Chittaro and Vianello 2014); however, the meditation mindfulness trend persists. For example, the Calm application has recently partnered with Samsung Health, a comprehensive health and wellness application solution, to offer users seamless access to the mindfulness content (Calm 2019). ...
The practice of meditative mindfulness as a process of bringing a certain quality of attention to moment-by-moment experiences is considered important in achieving subjective wellbeing. In the era of increasing digitization, a new trend in the use of technological devices and smartphone applications has arisen which aims to cultivate mindfulness in everyday lives. This trend holds important repercussions for the development of eTourism, especially in the context of managing and (co-)creating tourist experiences, as attention to and awareness of a present-moment experience represent the pillars of mindfulness. Although there are several studies that discuss meditative mindfulness in the context of tourism, there are no clear directions on how to employ technology-assisted mindfulness in achieving specific business goals, such as to (co-)create tourist experiences. This chapter provides a comprehensive and critical review of technology-assisted mindfulness in the context of tourist experiences. To this end, it first elaborates upon the definition of meditative mindfulness. It, then, takes stock of research on technology-assisted mindfulness, discusses the scope for the co-creation of technology-assisted mindful tourist experiences and analyses the antecedents of their integration into organizational practices of tourism and hospitality enterprises. Finally, the chapter outlines directions for future research.
... To date, very few original apps exist that were specifically designed and tested for mindfulness (excluding guided-meditation programs). The AEON app was developed to improve the mindfulness factor Decentering (Chittaro and Vianello 2014), while a modified version of the Positive Activity Jackpot was used to cultivate the mindfulness factor Openness to experience (Sliwinski et al. 2018b). Yet, there is no digital interactive intervention that is aimed at training mindfulness by means of targeting all of its known evidence-based factors. ...
... To obtain a more detailed picture of the game's impact, individual CHIME factors were analysed. A significant positive effect was found for the Decentering factor, confirming the successful implementation of its game design element as proposed by the AEON app (Chittaro and Vianello 2014). A significant positive effect was measured for the factor Acting with Awareness, which suggests a beneficial effect and successful implementation of breath counting as the core game mechanic (Levinson et al. 2014). ...
This paper evaluated a novel digital game for mindfulness training and assessment. The Interactive Mindfulness Program and Virtual Evaluation (IMProVE) was built as part of a systematic research-based process that investigated how technology can be used to cultivate mindfulness. Developed as an infinite runner game, IMProVE targets eight mindfulness factors, as defined by the Comprehensive Inventory of Mindfulness Experiences, by means of embedded game design elements. Embedded metrics measure the player’s objective level of mindfulness as deduced by play style and performance. Ninety-four participants tested IMProVE for its efficacy on state mindfulness and user experience. Mixed results were obtained, with a significant learning effect on state mindfulness on one of the two instruments only, which did not correspond with the embedded metrics. Effects on individual mindfulness factors reached significance in two cases. IMProVE’s user experience was rated overall as very positive, supporting its potential for mindfulness training and assessment. The limitations of the game and its evaluation study are discussed in detail.
... There is also evidence that these programs target hypothesized mechanisms of change, producing (a) within-condition increases in acceptance of internal experiences (Levin et al., 2014;Ly et al., 2014); decentering, defined by Fresco et al., (2007a) as the ability to observe experiences as mental events that come and go versus self-defining truths (Chittaro & Vianello, 2014); and mindfulness, or defined by Kabat-Zinn (1994) as an intentional presentmoment attention without judgment (Dimidjian et al., 2014;Lappalainen et al., 2014); between-group increases in education-related 890 e u s t i s e t a l . ...
... However, additional research is needed to examine whether or not these hypothesized mechanisms in fact mediate changes in outcomes, which was not tested in the current study. These results are generally consistent with the limited existing research on increases in hypothesized mechanisms in web-based approaches (e.g., Chittaro & Vianello, 2014;Levin et al., 2014). Levin and colleagues (2017) recently examined mechanisms of change more rigorously using Mixed-model repeated-measures analyses, and found significant Condition × Time interactions for mindful acceptance (PHLMS-acceptance) and values (Valuing Questionnaire-obstruction subscale), which both mediated changes in outcomes, but did not find significant interactions for experiential avoidance (AAQ-2) or mindful awareness (PHLMS-awareness), nor the progress subscale of the Valuing Questionnaire (Levin et al., 2017). ...
The high rates of anxiety in college students and the many barriers to accessing evidence-based care in communities and on campuses indicate a clear need to explore ways to increase access to evidence-based treatments. Web-based interventions and preventions are one way to bridge this gap; they hold the potential to decrease mental health disparities and enhance student functioning. The current RCT examined the acceptability and efficacy of a 3-session web-based therapist-assisted acceptance-based behavioral intervention targeting anxiety (Surviving and Thriving During Stress) for college students versus a waitlist (WL) control condition, in a sample of racially and ethnically diverse college students. Overall, participants rated the program as helpful and acceptable. Mixed-effects regression models (MRMs) were run in SPSS to examine the effects of time, condition, and Condition × Time on outcomes and hypothesized mechanisms. Significant Condition × Time interactions for general anxiety, depression, and quality of life (QOL) emerged, suggesting that SATDS participants reported significantly greater changes on these outcomes from pre- to posttreatment versus WL. However, interaction effects were nonsignificant for anxious arousal and social anxiety. MRMs examining hypothesized mechanisms revealed significant Condition × Time interactions for experiential avoidance, decentering, and values-based living. However, interaction effects were nonsignificant for mindfulness. All significant gains were maintained at 1-month follow-up, with the exception of QOL. Results contribute to the growing literature on the acceptability and efficacy of web-based approaches, and suggest these approaches can be effective for diverse college students, and may provide a unique platform to increase access to evidence-based care.
... Other mobile applications focused on specific mindfulness practices or purposes: the impact on affective experience of walking and meditative breathing [23], smartphone assisted walking meditation [24] or thought distancing [25,26]. Mobile applications related with mindfulness were also developed as a tool in psychotherapy and clinical interventions, like reducing stress [27] or improving smoking cessation rates [28]. ...
... Gender has been shown to be a relevant item since there is a clear bias for females among the participants (from whom about two thirds were women). The biggest interest of women for mindfulness mobile applications was also observed in [25]. Several studies try to explain why women are more likely to use mHealth to ensure their health [44]. ...
Background and Objective
Different review articles support the usefulness and effectiveness of mindfulness techniques in health and wellbeing. In this paper we present a first prototype of a mobile application to help with the training and practice of mindfulness, taking into account the lacks detected in a previous literature review. Our aim was to measure acceptance and perceived quality, as well as gather data about app usage. Their dependence on demographic variables and the change in mindful level was also measured.
Materials and Methods
Two versions of a new application were developed, “Mindfulness” and “Mindfulness Sci”. The application has been tested in two pilot studies: in traditional face-to-face mindfulness groups and in individual and independent use.
Results
3977 users were involved in this study: 26 in the first trial during an 8-week usage period and 3951 in the second trial during 17 months. In the first study, participants assessed the app with high scores. They considered it as a helping tool for mindfulness practice, user-friendly and with high quality of use. The positive perception was maintained after 8-weeks meditation workshops, and participants considered that its use could contribute to obtain benefits for mental and physical health. In the second study, we found rather weak associations between usage time and age, nationality and educational level. The mindful level showed a weak positive correlation with the session accomplished but slightly above the boundary of statistical significance (p-value = 0.051). Videos and information stood out as the most accessed resources.
Conclusions
Up to our knowledge, this is the first app developed with the help of health professionals in Spanish that could be used with a general aim, in health and wellbeing. The results are promising with a positive evaluation in face-to-face and independent use situations. Therefore, the number of potential users is enormous in a global worldwide context.
... With regard to incident management processes, Muhren et al (2007) found that organizations can learn from HROs that utilize this capability by dealing with high-complexity situations and tight-coupling to increase mindfulness. The other studies (four papers) that address mindfulness as a technique to reduce stress proved that special mobile applications support thought-distancing meditation techniques (Chittaro & Vianello, 2014) and that technologies increase well-being by fostering meditation mindfulness (Vidyarthi & Riecke, 2014). CASA studies, investigating how informational social influence exerted by a computer prompts or inhibits mindfulness, reveal that enduring dispositional differences like rationality are of high importance when dealing with placebic vs. real information. ...
... Finally, the individual level of mindfulness encompasses 22 papers dealing with different types of mindfulness referring to the individual as the subject of analysis: individual mindfulness Overall, the papers derive their evidence from data collected from employees (Timmerman, 2002;Sun & Fang, 2010;Wolf et al, 2011;Dernbecher, 2014;Dernbecher et al, 2014;Nwankpa & Roumani, 2014) with managers as a special subgroup (Fiol & O'Connor, 2003;Sammon & Adam, 2007;Goswami et al, 2008;Goswami et al, 2009), students ( Lee, 2005;Lee, 2009;Lee, 2010;Sun & Fang, 2010;Ie et al, 2012;Kim & Sundar, 2012;Liang et al, 2013;Chittaro & Vianello, 2014), randomly chosen individuals (Vidyarthi & Riecke, 2014), or in a general conceptual manner (Carter et al, 2011;Nevo & Nevo, 2012;Keutel et al, 2014). ...
The concept of mindfulness has garnered increasing attention during the last decade. Initially proposed within the scope of information systems (IS) research as a means of creating a deeper knowledge foundation for decision making regarding information technology (IT) innovations, it soon became broadly applied throughout IS research. To gain a better understanding of the evolved diversity of this concept, this paper reviews and analyzes extant IS research by means of (a) the investigated IS themes, (b) the purpose of using the concept, (c) the level of application of the concept, and (d) the tendency to focus either on mindfulness, mindlessness, or both. By synthesizing research findings, we derive a high-level IS mindfulness theory. We then propose future research opportunities, such as the explanation of the relationships between different levels of mindfulness, applying mindfulness to bridge the different phases of the software development process, and the identification of guidelines for designing information systems that facilitate mindfulness. As the first review on the application of mindfulness in IS research, we contribute to the overall understanding of mindfulness and address the four abovementioned dimensions from which mindfulness emerges in order to demonstrate that mindfulness provides a meaningful platform for generating knowledge.
... Various technological applications have been developed to assist also in different relaxation and meditation-like exercises. For example, the AEON mobile application was designed to help naïve practitioners of mindfulness meditation (Chittaro and Vianello 2014). In the application, the users could write their thoughts on a piece of parchment, place it under water and make waves that would erase the parchments to blank. ...
... Anı yaşama; geçmiş veya gelecekle ilgili düşüncelerin kişinin o ana katılımını etkilemesine izin vermeden şimdiki ana tam olarak katılmayı ve dikkati gerektirir (Brown, 2017). Turistler, anı yaşamak tutumuyla dikkatini belirli bir duyguya, nesneye veya anın ve çevrenin bütünlüğüne odaklanırlar (Chittaro & Vianello, 2014). Maslow (2001) doruk deneyim olarak ifade ettiği kavramın anı yaşama ile yakından ilişkili olduğu ifade etmiştir. ...
Turizm faaliyetleri, doğası gereği bazı insanları olağan davranışların dışına çıkmaya zorlayan liminoid zihin durumunu içermektedir. Bu etkinlikler, daha az kontrollü ve daha kendine özgü olma eğiliminde olduğundan daha serbesttir. Dolayısıyla insanların tatildeki davranışları genellikle ev ortamındakinden farklılık göstermektedir. Bu bağlamda çalışmanın amacı turistlerin liminoid davranışlarının yaşam doyumuna etkisini incelemektir. Araştırma kapsamında 331 kişiden çevrimiçi anket tekniği ile veriler elde edilmiştir. Yapılan analizler sonucunda anı yaşama boyutunun yaşam doyumu üzerinde pozitif bir etkisinin olduğu, hazcılık ve özgürlük boyutlarının ise anlamlı bir etkisinin olmadığı tespit edilmiştir. Ayrıca turistlerin liminoid davranışlarının demografik özelliklere göre de farklılık gösterdiği sonucuna ulaşılmıştır.
... e feedback of the participants showed their positive feelings about the usage of the app. In addition, AEON [15] is another app for supporting thought distancing in the context of mindfulness. Practitioners write their thoughts in the app. ...
E-health sustainable systems can be optimized by empowering patients in self-care programs through artificial intelligence ecosystems in which both doctors and patients interact in an agile way. This work proposes agent-based simulators as a mechanism for predicting the repercussions of certain self-care programs in certain patients for finding the most appropriate ones. In order to make this easy for both doctors and patients, mobile agents are used to configure an app for each patient, and this app provides the resources to each self-care program. Mobile agents include a machine-learning module for learning which programs are the most appropriate for each patient. This approach is illustrated with two agent-based simulators for respectively reducing negative emotions such as depression and controlling heart rate variability extreme values related to stress. The resulting app was evaluated with a group of users with the Usefulness, Satisfaction and Ease of use (USE) scale and obtained 73% in usefulness, 77% in satisfaction, and 68% in ease of use. This trial is registered with According to the recommendations of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE), this manuscript states that all experiments have been approved with the ethical committee CEICA from Community of Aragon (Spain) with registration number C.I.PI18/099.
... Biofeedback is a closed-loop interactive system presenting measured physiological signals back to the user through real-time audiovisual, haptic, or other stimulation. It has been increasingly utilized in augmented meditation, such as in References [17,19]. Typically such systems utilize cardiac measures, electrodermal activity, or occasionally brain wave measures that could provide information regarding arousal and stress levels of the user [15]. ...
In a novel experimental setting, we augmented a variation of traditional compassion meditation with our custom-built VR environment for multiple concurrent users. The presence of another user’s avatar in shared virtual space supports social interactions and provides an active target for evoked compassion. The system incorporates respiration and brainwave-based biofeedback to enable closed-loop interaction of users based on their shared physiological state. Specifically, we enhanced interoception and the deep empathetic processes involved in compassion meditation with real-time visualizations of: breathing rate, level of approach motivation assessed from EEG frontal asymmetry, and dyadic synchrony of those signals between two users. We manipulated these interventions across eight separate conditions (dyadic or solo meditation; brainwave, breathing, both or no biofeedback) in an experiment with 39 dyads (N=8), observing the effect of conditions on self-reported experience and physiological synchrony. We found that each different shared biofeedback type increased users’ self-reported empathy and social presence, compared to no-biofeedback or solo conditions. Our study illustrates how dyadic synchrony biofeedback can expand the possibilities of biofeedback in affective computing and VR solutions for health and wellness.
... Various studies demonstrate that mHealth interventions are both feasible and effective in teaching adults with depression or anxiety skills to manage their symptoms [13][14][15][16][17][18] and can be helpful to teach skills to manage other conditions, such as chronic pain [19][20][21][22]. There is preliminary evidence that apps can be utilized to disseminate aspects of MT so that individuals can learn and practice aspects of mindfulness on their own [23][24][25]; however, little is known about how mHealth-delivered MT is used by the general population without individualized guidance from practitioners or outside of a controlled research design. ...
Background
As smartphones are now used by most Americans, it is increasingly possible for mental health mobile apps to be disseminated to the general public. However, little is known about how mobile mental health apps are used by the general population outside of a controlled research design.
Objective
Our objective is to describe how the general population engages with Mindfulness Coach, an iOS- and Android-based app designed to deliver a mindfulness training course.
Methods
Using anonymous download and analytics data, we characterized the reach, usage, retention, and impact of Mindfulness Coach. We included mobile analytics data from all unique downloads of Mindfulness Coach between August 1, 2018, and April 8, 2019 (N=104,067) as well as starred reviews from all Mindfulness Coach users who provided reviews of the app as of March 1, 2020. Mindfulness characteristics were measured by an in-app assessment using the Five-Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire–Short Form (FFMQ-SF).
ResultsUsers engaged, on average, in 4.3 visits to the app (SD 8.8; median 2; 90th percentile 8) and associated with an average total of 49.2 interactions with the app (ie, clicks within the app) (SD 113.8; median 19; 90th percentile 105). Users spent an average of 16.2 minutes (SD 63.1) engaged with the app over the full study time period. There were strong linear effects of app engagement on total FFMQ-SF scores. For example, FFMQ-SF scores were associated with more time spent engaged with the app (R2=.23; P
... Various studies demonstrate that mHealth interventions are both feasible and effective in teaching adults with depression or anxiety skills to manage their symptoms [13][14][15][16][17][18] and can be helpful to teach skills to manage other conditions, such as chronic pain [19][20][21][22]. There is preliminary evidence that apps can be utilized to disseminate aspects of MT so that individuals can learn and practice aspects of mindfulness on their own [23][24][25]; however, little is known about how mHealth-delivered MT is used by the general population without individualized guidance from practitioners or outside of a controlled research design. ...
BACKGROUND
Because smartphones are now used by most Americans, it is increasingly possible for mental health mobile applications to be disseminated to the general public. However, little is known about how mobile mental health apps are used by the general population outside of a controlled research design.
OBJECTIVE
To describe how the general population engages with Mindfulness Coach, an iOS and Android based app designed to deliver a mindfulness training course.
METHODS
Using anonymous download and analytics data, we characterize the reach, usage, retention and impact of Mindfulness Coach. We included mobile analytics data from all unique downloads of Mindfulness Coach between August 1st, 2018 through April 8th, 2019 (n=104,067) as well as star reviews from all Mindfulness Coach users who provided reviews of the app as of March 1st, 2020. Mindfulness characteristics were measured by an in-app assessment using the Five-Factor Mindfulness Questionnaire Short Form (FFMQ-SF).
RESULTS
On average, users engaged in 4.3 visits to the app (sd = 8.8, Median = 2, 90th% = 8), associated with an average total of 49.2 interactions with the app (i.e., clicks within the app) (sd = 113.8, Median = 19, 90th% = 105). Users spent an average of 16.2 minutes engaged with the app over the full study time period. There were strong linear effects of app engagement on total MMFQ-SF scores. For example, MMFQ-SF scores were associated with more time spent engaged with the app (R2 = .23 P < .001). Mindfulness Coach has been reviewed in the Android Play store 3,415 times with an average rating of 4.7 out of 5 stars and over 2,000 times in the Apple App Store with an average rating of 4.8 out of 5 stars.
CONCLUSIONS
These findings suggest that Mindfulness Coach has achieved substantial and sustained reach in the population, however, it is used less frequently than desired by many downloaders. There is a sub-population of users who engage in the app regularly over an extended period of time, and there is a clear relationship between app use and improvements in mindfulness. To strengthen Mindfulness Coach’s public health impact, more research is needed to understand who is using the app and how and design strategies to increase user engagement in order to receive a larger dose of mindfulness treatment.
... There have only been a limited number of studies concerned with the effects of mobile or wearable technology for technology-supported mindfulness or meditation practice (such as [3]), though this is rapidly growing. Though small-scale, this study contributes to the intellectual agenda for human-technology relationship research in that it provides new empirical findings on the human perception of technology-guided meditation training. ...
Mobile and wearable technology now offers new avenues for technology-supported meditation practice and learning. Through a qualitative-dominant con-vergent parallel design, this study explored new empirical findings on the human perception of such technology-guided meditation training. A purposive sample of six participants trialled the device in several sessions during three weeks. Post-use, they commend the device for prompting self-guided learning. They highlight the importance of personalisation and adaptivity in educational technology, befit-ting Western pedagogical thought. Though these are guiding principles in current technology development, as they are believed to improve learning efficiency, they also prove crucial to user satisfaction and continued use of these technologies of the self.
... Apps such as the thought-distancing training AEON which allows the user to visualise their thoughts as imaginary ink on parchment placed under water. By touching the screen, the user can produce waves which progressively dissolve each written thought (Chittaro & Vianello, 2014). ...
From our experience in the MinD project designingfordementia.eu there are different types of findings that can be useful for other researchers, designers and people with lived experience who may want to co-develop future studies involving design with and for people with dementia. This report offers the theoretical background and framework as well as insights and recommendations to support others who wish to follow a mindful design and co-design process in participation with people with dementia.
The MinD Design Guidelines Report has been developed as one of the outcomes of the MinD project, (WP6, D6.1). We wish to thank all project researchers, external partners, and especially participants of several Groups of Experts by Experience (GEE), including the European Working Group of People with Dementia (EWGPWD), the Public and Patient Involvement (PPI) group in Nottingham, and GEE participants at INTRAS, Valladolid, for their excellent contributions to the MinD project and to make it happen.
This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No 691001. This document reflects only the author’s view and the Research Executive Agency is not responsible for any use that may be made of the information it contains.
... More recent approaches to induce mindfulness include computer-based programs, though originally these interventions did not have many interactive components. Despite limited interactive components, evidence supports the viability of such computer-based interventions on chronic pain, stress management, and depression, among other outcomes (see Chittaro & Vianello, 2014 for review).One new approach for inducing mindfulness is using mobile apps. These newer apps allow for standardized delivery at a low cost, high convenience, no need for travel to professionals/trainers, and require little training. ...
... A number of mindfulness-based interventions are extremely relevant for tourist experiences, such as being mindful while walking and/or eating (Thompson and Waltz, 2007). With a "living-in-the-moment" attitude, consumer attention is focused on a particular feeling, object or the wholeness of the moment and the surroundings (Chittaro and Vianello, 2014). This may prompt conscious consumers to better engage with whatever is currently unfolding in the present moment using the omnipresent access to ICT. ...
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to introduce e-mindfulness as a tourism trend. Mindfulness meditation is becoming increasingly mainstream, which is reflected in a rapidly growing number of related technology applications. Such technology-assisted mindfulness is typically referred to as e-mindfulness. The e-mindfulness trend creates opportunities for the tourism industry but also implies changed consumer perspectives on tourist experiences.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper is based on a general review of academic literature, news reports and online resources regarding the offerings of related technologies.
Findings
Implications of e-mindfulness for consumers, tourism service providers and designers of future tourism experiences are outlined.
Originality/value
This is the first paper to conceptualize e-mindfulness as a tourism trend.
... One study provided naïve meditators training in the mindfulness technique of thought distancing using a smartphone app or traditional mindfulness practice without an app. They found significantly greater mindfulness and pleasantness and lower perceived difficulty associated with the smartphone app-based mindfulness practice compared with the nonapp conditions [23]. More investigations are needed to determine in what ways smartphone apps can be employed as an effective medium of delivering mindfulness training to vulnerable populations who are naïve to meditation. ...
Background
Mindfulness meditation (MM) is a commonly used psychological intervention for pain, mood, and anxiety conditions, but can be challenging to practice with severe symptoms without proper training. The Mindfulness Meditation app (MMA) is a supportive training tool specifically developed for this study to aid in the practice of mindful breathing using a smartphone.
Objective
This study aims to evaluate the psychophysiological effects of the MMA. Specifically, the study will assess parasympathetic functioning using heart rate variability (HRV; primary outcome), pain and mood symptoms, mind-wandering and present moment awareness, and breath focus in groups of undergraduate participants who self-report clinically-relevant symptoms of chronic pain (CP) and depression or anxiety (DA) and condition-free (CF) participants who do not meet either criteria. We hypothesize that use of the MMA by study groups will lead to improved HRV, pain, and mood symptoms compared with groups who do not use the app.
Methods
This study is a two-arm randomized controlled trial (RCT) recruiting through a Web-based research participation pool at York University in Toronto, Canada. We are aiming for minimum 60 participants in each of CP, DA, and CF groups. Upon arriving to the laboratory, participants will be prescreened for classification into groups of CP, DA, or CF. Groups will be randomly assigned by a 1:1 ratio to an MMA (MMA+) condition or MM condition without the app (MMA−) after a brief stress induction procedure. In MMA+, participants will practice mindful breathing with a smartphone and press breath or other buttons at the sound of audio tones if their awareness was on breathing or another experience, respectively. HRV and respiration data will be obtained during rest (5 min), stress induction (5 min), and meditation conditions (12 min). Participants will complete psychological self-report inventories before and after the stress induction and after the meditation condition. Separate linear mixed models will be used to examine HRV and self-report inventories comparing groups and treatment conditions.
Results
Recruitment for the study began in November 2017 and is expected to be completed in winter of 2019-2020. As of July 2019, 189 participants have been recruited. The study’s main findings are expected to reveal a positive pattern of HRV responses in the CP, DA, and CF groups, such that a significant increase in HRV (P<.05) is detected in those randomized to the MMA+ condition in comparison with those randomized to the MMA− condition.
Conclusions
This RCT will contribute to the burgeoning health psychology literature regarding the clinical relevance of HRV in assessment and treatment of psychological and medical conditions. Furthermore, possible ways to inform designs of MM training tools delivered by apps and Web platforms for CP, depression, and anxiety conditions’ treatment will be discussed.
Trial Registration
Clinicaltrials.gov NCT03296007; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03296007.
International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID)
DERR1-10.2196/14119
... Biofeedback -using measured physiological signals as a feedback to the user through visualizations etc. -has been increasingly utilized in augmented meditation, e.g. [14,15]. The central idea is that the additional information provided by biofeedback increases interoceptive awareness [16,17], that is, helps the user to become more aware of her own state while meditating, and that increased awareness supports meditating by making it easier or more efficient. ...
In a novel experimental setting, we augmented a variation of traditional compassion meditation with our custom built VR environment for multiple concurrent users. The system incorporates respiration and brainwave based biofeedback that enables responsiveness to the shared physiological states of the users. The presence of another user's avatar in the shared virtual space supported low level social interactions and provided active targets for evoked compassion. We enhanced interoception and the deep empathetic processes involved in compassion meditation with real time visualizations of breathing rates and the level of approach motivation assessed from EEG frontal asymmetry, and the dyadic synchrony of those signals between the two users. We found how the different biofeedback types increased both the amount of physiological synchrony between the users and their self-reported empathy, illustrating how dyadic synchrony biofeedback can expand the possibilities of biofeedback in affective computing and VR solutions for health and wellness.
... To improve Awareness towards inner experiences (breath awareness, body awareness), it is recommended to use the player's internal stimuli instead of external stimuli in the virtual world. Breath counting and focusing on the sensations produced by breathing were found to be effective for this factor [34]. Directing the player's attention to different parts of the body with novel tasks can improve Openness to experience (Study 2), and integrating the player's thoughts in the game to defuse them improves Decentering [35]. Emotions such as compassion and Acceptance can be trained by using narrative scenarios in conjunction with different perspectives, for example, mirroring the player's acts of compassion from a third-person perspective [17]. ...
This research investigates the relationship between mindfulness and digital games, by identifying which aspects of mindfulness can be trained by digital games and which game elements influence factors of mindfulness. Games and interactive approaches with research evidence for their efficacy are presented for each individual mindfulness factor, as defined by the CHIME eight-factor model of mindfulness. Two experiments were conducted to validate whether games can improve mindfulness. First, an expert review was conducted, where domain experts rated the fit of games to their associated mindfulness factor. Second, a laboratory study tested the effect of games on mindfulness, revealing positive significant effects on state mindfulness. Elaborating on the research findings from all studies, a framework is proposed to inform the design of digital games for improving mindfulness, and implications plus limitations are discussed.
... adapted from the Internet-based mindfulness-based training that have been developed in the previous study [28]. Mindfulness exercises, including body scan, mindful breathing, mindful eating, mindful walking, three-minute breathing space, thought distancing exercise [50] are audio-recorded to facilitate participants to practice mindfulness. Readings and graphics are included to explain the concept of mindfulness and to share with participants the common difficulties they may come across during mindfulness practices. ...
Background:
Mindfulness-based interventions, self-compassion training, and cognitive behavioral therapy have garnered much evidence in its salutary effects on mental health. With increasing application of smartphone and mobile technology on health promotion, this study investigated the efficacy and possible moderators of mindfulness, self-compassion, and cognitive behavioral psychoeducation training mobile apps in the improvement of mental health.
Objective:
The aim of this study was to examine the efficacy of 3 mobile app-based programs: mindfulness-based program, self-compassion program, and cognitive behavioral psychoeducation program in improving mental well-being and reducing psychological distress. Changes in mindful awareness and self-compassion were also assessed. To further delineate the suitability of each program for different types of individuals, individual difference variables (ie, discomfort with emotions and tolerance for ambiguity) were explored for potential moderation.
Methods:
This study was a 3-arm, randomized, controlled, noninferiority trial examining the efficacy of mindfulness-based program, self-compassion program, and cognitive behavioral psychoeducation. Participants were randomized into either 1 of the 3 conditions. Throughout the 4-week, 28-session program, participants spent 10-15 min daily reviewing the course content and practicing various related exercises. At preprogram, postprogram, and 3-month follow-up, participants also completed Web-based measures of mental well-being, psychological distress, mindful-awareness, and self-compassion as well as the proposed moderators.
Results:
Among the 2161 study participants, 508 and 349 completed the post- and 3-month follow-up assessment, respectively. All 3 conditions (mindfulness-based program: N=703; cognitive behavioral psychoeducation: N=753; self-compassion program: N=705) were found to be efficacious in improving mental well-being and reducing psychological distress. All conditions enhanced mindful awareness at postprogram. Significant interaction effect was found on self-compassion; cognitive behavioral psychoeducation and self-compassion program, but not mindfulness-based program, significantly enhanced self-compassion at postprogram. No significant differences regarding usage and users' satisfaction were found among the 3 conditions. None of the proposed moderators were found to be significant.
Conclusions:
Mindfulness-based, self-compassion, and cognitive behavioral psychoeducation mobile apps were efficacious in improving mental well-being and reducing psychological distress among adults at postprogram and 3-month follow-up. Future app-based psychological training programs should consider gamification and personalization of content or feedback to enhance engagement and mitigate the high attrition rates that are common in app-based health promotion programs.
Trial registration:
Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (ChiCTR) ChiCTR-TRC-13003468; http://www.chictr.org.cn/hvshowproject.aspx?id=6220 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/734PlOz50).
... In the case of the mindfulness app AEON, a non-digital control group, where participants had to imagine the same task revealed to be equally effective for improving the mindfulness skill of thought-distancing (Chittaro & Vianello, 2014), therefore it may be that drawing these activities on paper cards will yield similar benefits. While mindfulness meditation is some-times perceived as a daunting task (Lomas, Cartwright, Edginton, & Ridge, 2014), the advantage of this digital app is that it provides a more motivating method through its gamification elements, that might strengthen the daily mindfulness practice and achieve more stable benefits. ...
In this study a modified version of an app for training mindfulness and the mindfulness factor openness to experience, is presented. This study also extends the utility of an existing app, Positive Activity Jackpot. The Positive Activity Jackpot app uses gamified micro-tasks, by developing and integrating mindfulness-specific tasks. An evaluation of the app’s subjective and objective efficacy is reported from the findings in the following two studies: firstly, an expert review and secondly, a between subjects experiment. The newly created/modified app was rated by experts as a suitable tool for inducing the state mindfulness in the first study and demonstrated a significant training effect for state mindfulness in the second study, but failed to reach significance for the openness to experience measure. In conclusion, micro-tasks using mindfulness apps may fit current busy schedules, as well as engaging users through playful audio-visual feedback. The
validity of the openness to experience sub-scale in this study, as well as the lack of appropriate state mindfulness instruments for evaluating digital mindfulness apps, were identified as main limitations.
... The most common mindfulness-based designs take the form of a mobile application [8] that tackle mindfulness from different angles: mobile applications that guide a user to distance itself from troubling thoughts [78,47], foster mindful walking through ambient sound generated from walking and breathing patterns [7], applications that serve as mindfulness meditation timers [48], applications for didactic guided meditation sessions [69], or applications that integrate mindfulness principles within a broader framework such as acceptance and commitment therapy [1]. Beside mobile and computer applications, mindfulness-based designs have taken on the form of audio installations -Sonic Cradle [73,74], virtual environments [41] -The Meditation Chamber [64], RelaWorld [32], Sanctuarium [12], PsychicVR [2] and more recently, mixed reality environments -Inner Garden [58]. ...
The third wave of HCI research has interest in understanding how technologies can mediate personal experiences and improve life quality. In particular, immersive environments combined with the practices of mindfulness meditation have a strong potential to increase the user's attention to the self. Often, people feel disconnected from their bodies and experiences, and guided attention to self can alleviate this disconnect as in focused-attention meditation. In focused-attention meditation, breathing often constitutes the primary object on which to focus attention. In this context, sustained breath awareness plays a crucial role in the emergence of the meditation experience. Hence, we designed a virtual environment for head-mounted display that supports sustained attention on breathing by employing users' breathing in interaction. The virtual environment depicts an abstract ocean in which one is immersed, accompanied with a generative soundtrack. Both sounds and visuals are directly mapped to the user breathing patterns, thus bringing the awareness researched. We conducted micro-phenomenology interviews to unfold the process in which breath awareness can be induced and sustained in this environment. The findings revealed the mechanisms by which audio and visual cues in VR can elicit and foster breath-awareness, and unfolded the nuances of this process through subjective experiences of the study participants. Finally, the results emphasize the important role that a sense of agency and control have in shaping the overall quality of the experience. This can in turn inform the design specifications of future mindfulness-based designs focused on breath awareness.
... Outside of meditation guides, there are approaches that explore aspects of mindfulness meditation, but are not wholly considered mindfulness practices. For example, research on a mobile application called AEON used interactive instruction to help users practice thought distancing, a form of decentering, by prompting the user to enter his/her thoughts, visualize them, and engage in gestures that dissolve each written thought [21]. Increasingly, there are approaches that adopt persuasive elements such as reminders to pull the user to practice. ...
Computer-supported mindfulness (CSM) is a burgeoning area filled with varied approaches such as mobile apps and EEG headbands. However, many of the approaches focus on providing meditation guidance. The ubiquity of mobile devices may provide new opportunities to support mindfulness practices that are more situated in everyday life. In this paper, a new situated mindfulness approach is explored through a specific mobile app design. Through an experimental design, the approach is compared to traditional audio-based mindfulness meditation, and a mind wandering control, over a one-week period. The study demonstrates the viability for a situated mobile mindfulness approach to induce mindfulness states. However, phenomenological aspects of the situated mobile approach suggest both promises and pitfalls for computer-supported mindfulness using a situated approach.
... A pesar de que el mercado de aplicaciones móviles se escapa al objetivo de esta revisión, es interesante considerar el hecho de que existen algunas aplicaciones para smartphones que ayudan a meditadores nóveles a practicar la atención plena. Algunas de las aplicaciones que han sido evaluadas mediante estudios pilotos o pruebas controladas aleatorizadas son: "The multimedia-assisted Breathwalk-aware system" ( Yu, Wu, Lee y Hung, 2012), la aplicación AEON (Chittaro y Vianello, 2014) y la aplicación It's time to relax! ( Carissoli, Villani y Riva, 2015). También están tomando impulso algunas experiencias simuladas en la industria del juego, que emplean la relajación, la meditación y la reflexión. ...
In spite of the interest in mindfulness and its researchs have grown exponentially in recent years, demonstrating multiple benefits, the difficulties or obstacles associated with the practice continue to exist nowadays. Virtual Reality (RV) could contribute to the learning and use of this technique.
The main aim of the present study is to revise the studies related to virtual reality which enhances the development of mindfulness. In this manner, a total of 10 articles have been considered. Although these studies have delivered positive results, there is not enough evidence to support its use in mindfulness. This may be due to the fact that VR technology is in the first stages of development in the area of mindfulness. It´s necessary more research about this which includes randomized controlled trials and larger samples, among others.
... Over the 4week study period, participants reported significant increases of decentering that were comparable for experienced meditators and participants with no or minimal experience with meditation. In an earlier laboratory study, the AEON app compared favorably to two other decentering interventions (i.e., cloud imagery, Wells 2005 and card tossing, Hayes et al. 1994;Leahy 2006) in terms of increased decentering, pleasantness, and ease of use (Chittaro and Vianello 2014). ...
Although several hundreds of apps are available that (cl)aim to promote mindfulness, only a few methodologically sound studies have evaluated the efficacy of these apps. This randomized waiting-list controlled trial therefore tested the hypothesis that one such app (the VGZ Mindfulness Coach) can achieve immediate and long-term improvements of mindfulness, quality of life, general psychiatric symptoms, and self-actualization. One hundred ninety-one experimental participants received the VGZ Mindfulness Coach, which offers 40 mindfulness exercises and background information about mindfulness without any form of therapeutic guidance. Compared to 186 control participants, they reported large (Cohen’s d = 0.77) and statistically significant increases of mindfulness after 8 weeks and small-to-medium increases of the Observing, Describing, Acting with awareness, Nonjudging, and Nonreactivity mindfulness facets as measured with the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (Cohen’s d = 0.66, 0.26, 0.49, 0.34, and 0.43, respectively). Also, there were large decreases of general psychiatric symptoms (GHQ-12; Cohen’s d = −0.68) and moderate increases of psychological, social, and environmental quality of life (WHOQOL-BREF; Cohen’s d = 0.38, 0.38, and 0.36, respectively). Except for social quality of life, these gains were maintained for at least 3 months. We conclude that it is possible to achieve durable positive effects on mindfulness, general psychiatric symptoms, and several aspects of quality of life at low costs with smartphone apps for mindfulness such as the VGZ Mindfulness Coach.
Electronic supplementary material
The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s12671-017-0761-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
... With digital technologies potentially revolutionizing health and well-being, people increasingly turn to technology to handle stress, anxiety, social isolation, and negative emotions [26][27][28]. Conventional mindfulness practice is moving to digital devices that potentially can support people's needs in the digital age [29,30]. New partnerships among psychologists, social scientists, designers, and engineers are needed to better understand the psychological and behavioral impact of these new technologies and applications [31]. ...
Background
During the past decade, there has been a rapid increase of interactive apps designed for health and well-being. Yet, little research has been published on developing frameworks for design and evaluation of digital mindfulness facilitating technologies. Moreover, many existing digital mindfulness applications are purely software based. There is room for further exploration and assessment of designs that make more use of physical qualities of artifacts.
Objective
The study aimed to develop and test a new physical digital mindfulness prototype designed for stress reduction.
Methods
In this case study, we designed, developed, and evaluated HU, a physical digital mindfulness prototype designed for stress reduction. In the first phase, we used vapor and light to support mindful breathing and invited 25 participants through snowball sampling to test HU. In the second phase, we added sonification. We deployed a package of probes such as photos, diaries, and cards to collect data from users who explored HU in their homes. Thereafter, we evaluated our installation using both self-assessed stress levels and heart rate (HR) and heart rate variability (HRV) measures in a pilot study, in order to measure stress resilience effects. After the experiment, we performed a semistructured interview to reflect on HU and investigate the design of digital mindfulness apps for stress reduction.
Results
The results of the first phase showed that 22 of 25 participants (88%) claimed vapor and light could be effective ways of promoting mindful breathing. Vapor could potentially support mindful breathing better than light (especially for mindfulness beginners). In addition, a majority of the participants mentioned sound as an alternative medium. In the second phase, we found that participants thought that HU could work well for stress reduction. We compared the effect of silent HU (using light and vapor without sound) and sonified HU on 5 participants. Subjective stress levels were statistically improved with both silent and sonified HU. The mean value of HR using silent HU was significantly lower than resting baseline and sonified HU. The mean value of root mean square of differences (RMSSD) using silent HU was significantly higher than resting baseline. We found that the differences between our objective and subjective assessments were intriguing and prompted us to investigate them further.
Conclusions
Our evaluation of HU indicated that HU could facilitate relaxed breathing and stress reduction. There was a difference in outcome between the physiological measures of stress and the subjective reports of stress, as well as a large intervariability among study participants. Our conclusion is that the use of stress reduction tools should be customized and that the design work of mindfulness technology for stress reduction is a complex process, which requires cooperation of designers, HCI (Human-Computer Interaction) experts and clinicians.
... In general, users had positive feelings about the app according to their feedback. Moreover, AEON [3] is another app for distancing from thoughts in mindfulness. Practitioners write their thoughts in the app, and it shows their thoughts with appearance of hand-writing. ...
Among other utilities, expert and intelligent systems can provide estimations similar to the ones from human experts. In this context, agent-based simulators support the prediction of some features of groups of individuals based on the simulation of some autonomous entities called agents. However, the literature lacks the appropriate simulators to simulate the repercussions of mindfulness programs on the emotions of meditators. Mindfulness has proven to be related to several indicators of health and quality of life in the later years. Mindfulness has also proven to be strongly related with certain emotions, but there are different programs for training mindfulness. In this context, the current approach presents an Agent-based Simulator of Emotions in Mindfulness programs (ABSEM). The current approach allows instructors to define different mindfulness programs and simulate their repercussions on the emotions of a group of practitioners with certain features. In this way, these simulations support instructors in selecting an adequate program for a given group of practitioners. In addition, this simulator can also be useful for practitioners because it lets them know an estimation of the repercussions of each mindfulness program. In two different scenarios, the experiments show that the system provides simulated outcomes that are similar to the real ones, when establishing the same input circumstances. The current work distributes ABSEM as an open-source tool. This fact not only assures the reproducibility of the experiments, but also allows researchers and practitioners to use and extend the simulator. Therefore, ABSEM contributes on the application of expert and intelligent systems to the mindfulness field, allowing novel instructors and meditators benefit from the implicit knowledge integrated in the simulator. This system can promote both (a) the use of expert systems for exploring their performance in predicting emotional repercussions from any kind of health intervention, and (b) the practice of mindfulness for repairing negative emotions as a social benefit.
... One common feature in many of these gadgets and apps is mindfulness for stress reduction and wellbeing. Yet, while mindfulness components are common in these apps, little work has been done on researching the limits and possibilities with them (Chittaro & Vianello [5] and Kosunen et. al [11] are two examples of such explorative and evaluative work). ...
The digital health and wellbeing movement has led to development of digital mindfulness applications that aim to help people to become mindful. In this paper we suggest a broad scheme for classifying and ordering apps intended to support mindfulness. This scheme consists of four levels of what we here term digital mindfulness. One crucial aspect of the fourth level is that artifacts at this level allow for what we term as presence-with and presence-in as opposed to presence-through, which occurs at the first three levels. We articulate our four levels along with specific design qualities through concrete examples of existing mindfulness apps and through research through design (RtD) work conducted with design fiction examples. We then use a working design case prototype to further illustrate the possibilities of presence-with and presence-in. We hope our four levels of digital mindfulness framework will be found useful by other researchers in discussing and planning the design of their own mindfulness apps and digital artifacts.
... The feedback of the participants showed their positive feelings about the usage of the app. In addition, AEON [5] is another app for practicing thought distancing in the context of mindfulness. Practitioners write their thoughts in the app, and it displays their thoughts with hand-writing appearance within the water. ...
The heart rate variability is one of the most relevant health indicators. This indicator is related with the survival after myocardial infarction, the capacity of self-regulating emotions to positive states and the tolerance to stress. This work presents an agent-based simulator about the influences of different mindfulness programs on this indicator. The simulator is useful for (a) instructors as they can simulate the repercussion of new mindfulness programs, and for (b) practitioners since it can assist them in selecting an appropriate mindfulness program. The simulator is called ABS-MindHeart, and has been experienced with two different mindfulness programs. Its simulated outcomes are similar to the real ones according to the Paired t-test. This open-source simulator is distributed as an app and an online tool.
... The user then can touch the screen which makes the ink slowly dissolve on the piece of paper and " go away " . After comparing the effects of AEON to other mindfulness applications, it was found that AEON users had a more positive experience with combating their anxiety and maintaining good mental health (Chittaro et al. 2014). ...
This report discusses the creation and research behind a new mindfulness meditation application called Mindful Mustangs, which is created for the students of Cal Poly SLO. The goal of this mobile website is to use the various techniques used in mindful meditation to reduce the stress and anxiety that college students regularly face. With the onset of iOS and Android applications, similar health and behavioral applications are on the rise. The increase of these applications calls for a certain type of design and a robust analysis must be done to ensure the psychological health of the user. Mindfulness applications such as Stop, Breathe & Think and Calm have adopted different information architectures and aesthetics that are proven to achieve lower anxiety levels in the user. Understanding the features that contribute to the positive effects of these applications helped create Mindful Mustangs and can help develop more powerful psychological and behavioral applications in the future.
In providing a therapy treatment to a patient with depression, the communication between a psychiatric doctor and a patient with depression must not be limited solely during the therapy session. Therefore, this study aims to identify the appropriate mobile application according to the types of depression therapy that require mobile application-based therapy for adolescents with depression. The participants in this study were recruited based on purposive sampling. The first round which consisted of four psychiatric doctors involved two males and two females participating in this study followed by participation of 14 experts in the second round. This study which employed the Fuzzy Delphi Method revealed that Whatsapp is necessary and thus categorized as the main based–therapy for adolescents with depression and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy has been acknowledged as the most suitable type of depression therapy that needs mobile application-based therapy for adolescents with depression. This method is useful to design a particular based-therapy module for the doctors to use in mobile application for adolescents with depression. The results of this study would be useful for doctors, particularly in using Whatsapp as a based therapy to interact with adolescents with depression in the future.
Incorporating the theoretical conceptualizations of Jon Kabat-Zinn and Ellen Langer, this volume illustrates how performers from a variety of disciplines - including sport, dance and music - can use mindfulness to achieve peak performance and improve personal well-being. Leading scholars in the field present cutting-edge research and outline their unique approach to mindfulness that is supported by both theory and practice. They provide an overview of current mindfulness-based manuals and programs used around the globe in countries such as the United States, China and Australia, exploring their effectiveness across cultures. Mindfulness and Performance will be a beneficial reference for practitioners, social and sport psychologists, coaches, athletes, teachers and students.
Objectives: To examine the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of Mindfulness Coach, an mHealth Mindfulness Therapy intervention.
Methods: We recruited 58 informal caregivers of older adults with cognitive impairment for this pilot feasibility trial. Participants completed measures of caregiver burden, stress, anxiety, and depression at baseline, 2 weeks, 4 weeks, and 8 weeks as well as acceptability and usability data at 8-weeks. The mobile app collected in-app use data including minutes spent using the app and number of unique visits to the app.
Results: Users found the app acceptable to use and were satisfied with its design and usability. Over the course of the study period, depression, anxiety, caregiver burden and perceived stress improved. These outcome variables also improved more as caregivers spent more time using the Mindfulness Therapy mHealth intervention.
Conclusions: Our results suggest that mHealth mindfulness therapy with caregivers of older adults with cognitive impairment is both feasible and acceptable to users, and that it successfully reduces psychological symptoms. Future work should focus on determining the appropriate doses of the mHealth therapy for particular outcomes and strategies to integrate it into routine care. Mindfulness Therapy delivered in an mHealth format may increase access to psychological treatment for caregivers.
The field of positive psychology (PP) research and practice is now 20 years old, and it has experienced significant growth since its formal launch in 1998 (Seligman, 1998; Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi, 2000). It is generally acknowledged that PP is an “umbrella term” and that it covers many different topics from a diverse range of disciplines. A review of the literature by Rusk & Waters (2013) found that the most densely concentrated PP topics are life satisfaction/happiness, motivation/achievement, optimism, and organisational citizenship/fairness.
In a similar vein, the field of coaching psychology (CP) has experienced significant growth in research and practice. There are now three meta-analytic studies (Theeboom, Beersma, & van Vianen, 2014; Jones, Woods, & Guillaume, 2015; Sonesh, Coultas, Lacerenza, Marlow, Benishek, & Salas, 2015) and one systematic review (Lai & McDowall, 2014) which highlight that coaching is effective, although the field could benefit from more randomised controlled trials (for example Spence & Grant, 2005).
The market for health-related apps is growing rapidly, and preliminary results show positive effects on stress, anxiety, depression and perceived well-being. This work is proposedas a guide for those who want to introduce the use of apps in their clinical practice. To qualify for review, the apps had to meet two prerequisites: one, to have one or more RCTs that demonstrate its effectiveness and two, to be available on the markets. A total of 70 apps are listed, of which 47 are supported by RCTs. Overall, the research found in this review shows that apps can be an effective support for therapy and that their use produces clinical benefits for most psychological problems, but further studies and clear regulations on the quality of the proposed apps are needed.
The emerging convergence of new technologies and health care is offering a new approach to support effective interventions. This chapter aims to describe how Positive Technology can help people cope with stress in several contexts. On the one hand, the potential capacity of sensor technologies to offer individuals the technology with which to monitor certain biological signals known to be associated with stress might serve to promote engagement with a mediated experience for stress management. On the other hand, the chapter focuses on the hedonic and eudaimonic experiences supported by technology in terms of inducing positive affective states and supporting personal growth by teaching strategies to reduce stress and enhance well-being. To further connect mediated experiences with real ones, the Interreality approach (IR) allows for the combination of assessment and intervention as inseparable parts of the general process of coping with stress.
This chapter explores the complementarity and integration of both fields and what they have to offer to the further development of positive psychology coaching (PPC) and more practically to the "PPC." It aims to give an historical account of the simultaneous emergence of the two complementary fields, an overview of the current status, and an outline of the authors' recommendations for how the two fields may continue to be integrated. While the two fields have been defined as complementary and there are some dedicated journal articles and conference presentations on the integration of positive psychology and coaching psychology, there are limited published texts available on the combination of both approaches, PPC. Coaching for the enhancement of optimal functioning and wellbeing has existed since the late 1980s when "executive coaching" first emerged. The RAW framework can be used within one-to-one coaching, group or team coaching, or training.
Pregnancy is a very special time in a woman's life, a time of important and complex step that can lead to the fall the previous personal balances and looking for new. This phase potentially critical, is often accompanied by anxiety, negative emotions, worries and stress about themselves, the couple's life, the baby. Among the many interventions available for the welfare of pregnant women, new technologies are playing an increasingly important role, thanks to its spread, the lower costs and its peculiar characteristics (interactivity, sociality, customizability, ubiquity, multimediality, velocity, etc). Smartphones and tablets in particular are proving excellent tools to accompany women on this journey toward a healthy motherhood.
The emerging convergence of new technologies and health care is offering a new approach to support effective interventions. This chapter aims to describe how Positive Technology can help people cope with stress in several contexts. On the one hand, the potential capacity of sensor technologies to offer individuals the technology with which to monitor certain biological signals known to be associated with stress might serve to promote engagement with a mediated experience for stress management. On the other hand, the chapter focuses on the hedonic and eudaimonic experiences supported by technology in terms of inducing positive affective states and supporting personal growth by teaching strategies to reduce stress and enhance well-being. To further connect mediated experiences with real ones, the Interreality approach (IR) allows for the combination of assessment and intervention as inseparable parts of the general process of coping with stress.
Introduction:
Smartphone-delivered healthcare interventions allow patients to access services on demand when needed, improving motivation and compliance. However, the use of mobile health apps has been scarcely explored in sexual medicine.
Aim:
To evaluate the effects of integrating psychological treatment for premature ejaculation (PE) with a mobile coaching app that offers therapeutic exercises on the patient's smartphone.
Methods:
This study comprised 35 heterosexual men with primary psychogenic PE (mean age 34 years, standard deviation = 9.15). All patients entered a cycle of 15 sessions of psychodynamic psychotherapy integrating behavioral therapy, each lasting about 45 minutes. The patients were randomly assigned to 2 groups, each of which performed daily homework exercises (physiotherapy exercises for reinforcing the pelvic floor muscles and cognitive exercises for distancing from sexual failure.) The first group (15 patients) received verbal and printed instructions only (treatment as usual-TAU), whereas the second group (17 patients) experienced the exercises with guidance from the mobile app (app). In both groups, the exercises started after the seventh session. Patients were advised to perform the exercises 3 times a day for 3 months.
Main outcome measures:
The primary outcome measures were the Premature Ejaculation Diagnostic Tool and the Premature Ejaculation Profile.
Results:
Analysis of the data revealed significant pre-post improvements in Premature Ejaculation Diagnostic Tool and Premature Ejaculation Profile scores for the app group compared with those of the TAU group (P < .01). The frequency of patients with no-PE condition for the app group after treatment was significantly higher than the frequency of patients with no-PE condition for the TAU group (P < .001).
Conclusion:
Results suggest that a mobile coaching app performs better than TAU in improving both the behavioral skills of ejaculatory delay and sexual self-confidence within a psychological treatment for PE. Future studies should collect follow-up data and explore the potential of mobile coaching apps in combined pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy interventions. Optale G, Burigat S, Chittaro L. et al. Smartphone-Based Therapeutic Exercises for Men Affected by Premature Ejaculation: A Pilot Study. J Sex Med 2020;8:461-471.
Recently, Tangible and Embodied Interaction (TEI) approaches to support people in mindfulness practices have been proposed in the literature, but they have scarcely explored the use of real natural elements in the interaction. In this article, we first present TANGAEON, a TEI system that augments the AEON mindfulness mobile app with an interactive, water-filled glass container. Second, we evaluate TANGAEON by contrasting it with two traditional mindfulness techniques and with AEON. TANGAEON obtained better results in terms of achieved mindfulness, perceived level of difficulty, and degree of pleasantness than the two traditional techniques. Moreover, considering all techniques, participants achieved the highest level of mindfulness with TANGAEON, and rated it as the most pleasant and preferred approach to practice. These results suggest that the use of TEI based on a natural element can offer a novel and effective way to help people approach and practice mindfulness, and to augment existing mindfulness apps.
This is a preview PDF to book including foreword, preface, Chapter 1 and references.
Positive Psychology Coaching in Practice provides a comprehensive overview of positive psychology coaching, bringing together the best of science and practice, highlighting current research, and emphasising the applicability of each element to coaching. With an international range of contributors, this book is a unique resource for those seeking to integrate positive psychology into their evidence-based coaching practice. Beginning with an overview of positive psychology coaching, the book includes an assessment of theories of wellbeing, an examination of mindfulness research, a guide to relevant neuroscience, and a review of a strengths-based approach. It also contains chapters that explore the application of ACT, the role of positive psychology in wellness and resilience coaching, positive leadership theory, and developmental psychological theories as they relate to coaching through significant life transitions. In each chapter, theory and research is thoroughly explored and applied directly to coaching practice and is supported with a list of relevant resources and a case study. The book concludes with the editors' views on the future directions of positive psychology coaching. Positive Psychology Coaching in Practice will be essential reading for professional coaches in practice and in training seeking to enhance their evidence-based practice; coaching psychologists; practitioners of positive psychology; and academics and students of coaching, coaching psychology, and positive psychology. Suzy Green is a clinical and coaching psychologist based in Australia. She is a leader in the fields of coaching psychology and positive psychology and is the founder of Sydney-based The Positivity Institute, dedicated to the research and application of positive psychology.
Esta revisión se realizó en las bases de datos excluidos los artículos de opinión y los que no tenían una evaluación previa y posterior al tratamiento.
To assess the change in mindfulness levels at a one-year follow-up visit in patients with fibromyalgia (FM) who were following recommended pharmacological treatment and to identify the variables related to that change.
As mindfulness research advances on a variety of fronts, it has become increasingly important to carefully define and measure the construct. In this commentary, we draw from our recent research experience on these topics in addressing four issues of primary concern to Bishop et al: The nature of mindfulness, the role of acceptance in the phenomenon, the relation between mindfulness and meditation, and the measurement of mindfulness in meditative and other contexts. © American Psychological Association D12 2004; all rights reserved.
The Meditation Chamber is a novel combination of immersive virtual reality (VR) and biofeedback technologies. Its primary goal is to help users lower their stress levels through meditation and muscle relaxation. Its secondary goal is to enable users who have never meditated to gain real-time feedback that allows them to sense when they are indeed lowering the physiological states that are indicative of meditating. During its first use - an exhibition at SIGGRAPH 2001, between Emerging Technologies and the Art Gallery — the relaxation levels of 411 users were studied. It is now in use at Virtually Better and its clinical partners. This paper explores its first iteration, and outlines the plan for its reconfigured, second use for the treatment of chronic pain.
Although mindfulness meditation traditionally is viewed as a lifelong practice, much current knowledge about its effects is based on short-term practitioners who have participated in mindfulness-based treatment. In the current study, long-term meditators and demographically similar
nonmeditators completed self-report measures of constructs expected to be related to the practice of mindfulness meditation. Extent of meditation experience was correlated in the expected directions with levels of mindfulness and with many other variables. Mean differences between meditators
and nonmeditators were significant in most cases. Mediation analyses were consistent with the hypothesis that practicing meditation is associated with increased mindfulness in daily life, which is related to decreased rumination, decreased fear of emotion, and increased behavioral self-regulation.
These mechanisms appear partially responsible for the relationships between mindfulness skills and psychological adjustment. Overall, the current study suggests that the long-term practice of mindfulness meditation may cultivate mindfulness skills and promote adaptive functioning.
Current military deployments have resulted in many psychological and physical health issues and created interest in protective measures to mitigate effects of prolonged and repetitive stress. Mindfulness training has been successfully used for stress reduction in other contexts. The following case report presents a detachment of U.S. Marines who received Mindfulness-Based Mind Fitness Training (MMFT) prior to deployment. Self-report measures of mindfulness, perceptions of stress, predictors of compliance with mindfulness practice, and time spent engaging in practice were indexed. More time spent engaging in practice corresponded with greater self-reported mindfulness; increases in mindfulness were associated with decreases in perceived stress.
Interventions based on training in mindfulness skills are becoming increasingly popular. Mindfulness involves intentionally bringing one's attention to the internal and external experiences occurring in the present moment, and is often taught through a variety of meditation exercises. This review summarizes conceptual approaches to mind-fulness and empirical research on the utility of mindfulness-based interventions. Meta-analytic techniques were incorporated to facilitate quantification of findings and comparison across studies. Although the current empirical literature includes many methodological flaws, findings suggest that mindfulness-based interventions may be helpful in the treatment of several disorders. Methodologically sound investigations are recommended in order to clarify the utility of these interventions.
There has been substantial interest in mindfulness as an approach to reduce cognitive vulnerability to stress and emotional distress in recent years. However, thus far mindfulness has not been defined operationally. This paper describes the results of recent meetings held to establish a consensus on mindfulness and to develop conjointly a testable operational definition. We propose a two-component model of mindfulness and specify each component in terms of specific behaviors, experiential manifestations, and implicated psychological processes. We then address issues regarding temporal stability and situational specificity and speculate on the conceptual and operational distinctiveness of mindfulness. We conclude this paper by discussing implications for instrument development and briefly describing our own approach to measurement.
As mindfulness research advances on a variety of fronts, it has become increasingly important to carefully define and measure the construct. In this commentary, we draw from our recent research experience on these topics in addressing four issues of primary concern to Bishop et al: The nature of mindfulness, the role of acceptance in the phenomenon, the relation between mindfulness and meditation, and the measurement of mindfulness in meditative and other contexts.
There are scientific advantages to defining mindfulness in terms of the psychological processes involved. Doing so, however, necessarily uncouples mindfulness from any given technology, including meditation. Defining mindfulness in terms of the self-regulation of attention and a posture of acceptance seems progressive, but there are underlying philosophical attachments in the proposed definition that might limit its applicability if they are treated too rigidly. © American Psychological Association D12 2004; all rights reserved.
Baer's review (2003; this issue) suggests that mindf ulness-based interventions are clinically efficacious, but that better designed studies are now needed to substantiate the field and place it on a firm foundation for future growth. Her review, coupled with other lines of evidence, suggests that interest in incorporating mindfulness into clinical interventions in medicine and psychology is growing. It is thus important that professionals coming to this field understand some of the unique factors associated with the delivery of mindfulness-based interventions and the potential conceptual and practical pitfalls of not recognizing the features of this broadly unfamiliar landscape. This commentary highlights and contextualizes (1) what exactly mindfulness is, (2) where it came from, (3) how it came to be introduced into medicine and health care, (4) issues of cross-cultural sensitivity and understanding in the study of meditative practices stemming from other cultures and in applications of them in novel settings, (5) why it is important for people who are teaching mind-fulness to practice themselves, (6) results from 3 recent studies from the Center for Mindfulness in Medicine, Health Care, and Society not reviewed by Baer but which raise a number of key questions about clinical applicability, study design, and mechanism of action, and (7) current opportunities for professional training and development in mindfulness and its clinical applications.
This study describes the effects of an 8-week course in Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR; J. Kabat-Zinn, 1982, 1990) on affective symptoms (depression and anxiety), dysfunctional attitudes, and rumination. Given the focus of mindfulness meditation (MM) in modifying cognitive processes, it was hypothesized that the primary change in MM practice involves reductions in ruminative tendencies. We studied a sample of individuals with lifetime mood disorders who were assessed prior to and upon completion of an MBSR course. We also compared a waitlist sample matched with a subset of the MBSR completers. Overall, the results suggest that MM practice primarily leads to decreases in ruminative thinking, even after controlling for reductions in affective symptoms and dysfunctional beliefs.
ACT is a therapy that is based philosophically in clinical behavior analysis. Functional contextualism is the world view that
underlies ACT. Theoretically ACT is based on RFT, which offers an account of how language creates pain and useless methods
of dealing with it, and which suggests alternative contextual approaches to these domains. ACT uses metaphors, experiential
exercises, and logical paradox to get around the literal content of language and to produce more contact with the ongoing
flow of experience in the moment. The primary ACT components are challenging the control agenda, cognitive defusion, willingness,
self as context, values, and commitment. ACT is part of the CBT tradition, although it has notable differences from traditional
CBT. The main purpose of ACT is to relieve human suffering through helping clients live a vital, valued life.
Cognitive theorists describe mindfulness as a form of attention-awareness in which thoughts can be observed in non-judging,
de-centered, and non-attached ways. However, empirical research has not examined associations between mindfulness and responses
to negative automatic thoughts, such as the ability to let go of negative cognition. In the first study reported in this article,
measures of dispositional mindfulness were negatively correlated with negative thought frequency and perceptions of the ability
to let go of negative thoughts in an unselected student sample. In the second study reported, these associations were replicated
in a treatment-seeking student sample, where participation in a mindfulness meditation-based clinical intervention was shown
to be associated with decreases in both frequency and perceptions of difficulty in letting-go of negative automatic thoughts.
Theoretical and clinical implications are discussed.
Using a cross-sectional design, we examined the relationship between naturally occurring levels of mindfulness and rumination
in students (n = 164). As predicted, we found that, when controlling for current depressive symptoms and prior history of
depression, mindfulness was significantly negatively correlated with rumination, but it was only associated with the extent
to which rumination was experienced as uncontrollable, not with global levels of rumination. Furthermore, mindfulness moderated
the relationship between global levels of rumination and uncontrollability of rumination, consistent with the suggestion that
high dispositional mindfulness reduces the extent to which ruminative reactions tend to escalate into self-perpetuating and
uncontrollable ruminative cycles.
KeywordsMindfulness-Rumination-Depression
Stress has been shown to have a number of negative effects on health over time. Mindfulness interventions have been shown to decrease perceived stress but access to interventions is limited. Therefore, the effectiveness of an online mindfulness course for perceived stress was investigated.
A preliminary evaluation of an online mindfulness course.
This sample consisted of 100 self-referrals to the online course. The average age of participants was 48 years and 74% were women.
The online programme consisted of modules taken from Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction and Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy and lasted for approximately 6 weeks. PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES: Participants completed the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) before the course, after the course and at 1-month follow-up. Completion of formal (eg, body scan, mindful movement) and informal (eg, mindful meal, noticing) mindfulness activities was self-reported each week.
Participation in the online mindfulness course significantly reduced perceived stress upon completion and remained stable at follow-up. The pre-post effect size was equivalent to levels found in other class-based mindfulness programmes. Furthermore, people who had higher PSS scores before the course reported engaging in significantly more mindfulness practice, which was in turn associated with greater decreases in PSS.
Because perceived stress significantly decreased with such limited exposure to mindfulness, there are implications for the accessibility of mindfulness therapies online. Future research needs to evaluate other health outcomes for which face-to-face mindfulness therapies have been shown to help, such as anxiety and depressive symptoms.
Work stress contributes significantly to corporate health costs. Numerous corporations have implemented worksite stress-management interventions to mitigate the financial and personal impact of stress on their employees. Cognitive-behavioral stress-management interventions can reduce both perceived and physiologically measured stress. Traditionally, these interventions have been delivered in small, instructor-led groups. Outcomes from a stress-management intervention provided via an instructor led versus a computer-presented format were compared through a randomized, controlled design. Brief relaxation procedures presented in both formats led to highly significant reductions in immediately-reported stress. Stress reduction, however, was not associated with improvement in longer-term indices of workplace stress following completion of the intervention and at a one-month follow-up. Attrition was significantly higher in the computer-presentation format. Across both presentation formats, however, more frequent use of stress-reduction techniques was correlated significantly with greater reductions in stress indices (e.g., nervousness, social isolation, overall work stress) at follow-up.
Mindfulness has been shown to be effective in treating various medical and mental problems. Especially its incorporation in cognitive-behavioural interventions has improved long-term outcomes of those treatments. It has also been shown, that brief mindfulness-based trainings are effective in reducing distress. There have been few web-based interventions incorporating mindfulness techniques in their manual and it remains unclear whether a brief web-based mindfulness intervention is feasible.
Out of 50 adults (different distress levels; exclusion criteria: <18 years, indication of psychotic or suicidal ideation in screening) who were recruited via e-mail and screened online, 49 were randomized into an immediate 2-weeks-treatment group (N=28) or a waitlist-control group (N=21), starting with a 2-week delay. Distress (BSI), perceived stress (PSQ), mindfulness (FMI), as well as mood and emotion regulation (PANAS/SEK-27) were measured at pre-, post- and 3-month follow-up (3MFU). Intention-to-treat analyses using MI for missing data and per-protocol analyses (≥50% attendance) were performed.
26 participants of the treatment group completed post-measures. Most measures under ITT-analysis revealed no significant improvement for the treatment group, but trends with medium effect sizes for PSQ (d=0.46) and PANASneg (d=0.50) and a small, non-significant effect for FMI (d=0.29). Per-protocol analyses for persons who participated over 50% of the time revealed significant treatment effects for PSQ (d=0.72) and PANASneg (d=0.77). Comparing higher distressed participants with lower distressed participants, highly distressed participants seemed to profit more of the training in terms of distress reduction (GSI, d=0.85). Real change (RCI) occurred for PSQ in the treatment condition (OR=9). Results also suggest that participants continued to benefit from the training at 3MFU.
This study of a brief web-based mindfulness training indicates that mindfulness can be taught online and may improve distress, perceived stress and negative affect for regular users. Although there were no significant improvements, but trends, for most measures under ITT, feasibility of such a program was demonstrated and also that persons continued to use techniques of the training in daily life.
German Clinical Trials Register (DRKS): DRKS00003209.
This pretrial study aimed to develop and test the usability of a four-week Internet intervention delivered by a Web-enabled mobile phone to support self-management of chronic widespread pain.
The intervention included daily online entries and individualized written feedback, grounded in a mindfulness-based cognitive behavioral approach. The participants registered activities, emotions and pain cognitions three times daily using the mobile device. The therapist had immediate access to this information through a secure Web site. The situational information was used to formulate and send a personalized text message to the participant with the aim of stimulating effective self-management of the current situation. Six women participated and evaluated the experience.
The intervention was rated as supportive, meaningful and user-friendly by the majority of the women. The response rate to the daily registration entries was high and technical problems were few.
The results indicate a feasible intervention. Web-applications are fast becoming standard features of mobile phones and interventions of this kind can therefore be more available than before.
ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT01236209.
Emotional awareness and self-regulation are important skills for improving mental health and reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease. Cognitive behavioral therapy can teach these skills but is not widely available.
This exploratory study examined the potential of mobile phone technologies to broaden access to cognitive behavioral therapy techniques and to provide in-the-moment support.
We developed a mobile phone application with touch screen scales for mood reporting and therapeutic exercises for cognitive reappraisal (ie, examination of maladaptive interpretations) and physical relaxation. The application was deployed in a one-month field study with eight individuals who had reported significant stress during an employee health assessment. Participants were prompted via their mobile phones to report their moods several times a day on a Mood Map-a translation of the circumplex model of emotion-and a series of single-dimension mood scales. Using the prototype, participants could also activate mobile therapies as needed. During weekly open-ended interviews, participants discussed their use of the device and responded to longitudinal views of their data. Analyses included a thematic review of interview narratives, assessment of mood changes over the course of the study and the diurnal cycle, and interrogation of this mobile data based on stressful incidents reported in interviews.
Five case studies illustrate participants' use of the mobile phone application to increase self-awareness and to cope with stress. One example is a participant who had been coping with longstanding marital conflict. After reflecting on his mood data, particularly a drop in energy each evening, the participant began practicing relaxation therapies on the phone before entering his house, applying cognitive reappraisal techniques to cope with stressful family interactions, and talking more openly with his wife. His mean anger, anxiety and sadness ratings all were lower in the second half of the field study than in the first (P </= .01 for all three scales). Similar changes were observed among other participants as they used the application to negotiate bureaucratic frustrations, work tensions and personal relationships. Participants appeared to understand the mood scales developed for this experience sampling application and responded to them in a way that was generally consistent with self-reflection in weekly interviews. Interview accounts of mood changes, associated with diurnal cycles, personal improvement over the course of the study, and stressful episodes, could be seen in the experience sampling data. Discrepancies between interview and experience-sampling data highlighted the ways that individuals responded to the two forms of inquiry and how they calibrated mood ratings over the course of the study.
Participants quickly grasped the Mood Mapping and therapeutic concepts, and applied them creatively in order to help themselves and empathize with others. Applications developed for mobile phones hold promise for delivering state-of-the-art psychotherapies in a nonstigmatizing fashion to many people who otherwise would not have access to therapy.
Despite encouraging preliminary findings regarding the efficacy of mindfulness and acceptance-based treatments for a range of psychological presentations, we have yet to elucidate mechanisms of action within these treatments. One mechanism through which mindfulness may reduce psychological symptoms and promote functioning is enhancing emotional responding and regulation. In this study, we used multimodal assessment to examine the effects of a brief mindfulness intervention in a laboratory setting on emotional experiences and regulation in response to distressing, positive, and affectively mixed film clips. Although there were no condition (mindfulness vs. control) effects on reports of emotional response or difficulties in regulation after the distressing film clip, participants in the mindfulness condition reported significantly greater positive affect in response to the positive film. Additionally, participants in the mindfulness condition reported more adaptive regulation (approaching significance, medium to large effect size) in response to the affectively mixed clip and significantly less negative affect immediately after this clip, although not after a recovery period. No significant differences emerged between conditions on physiological measures (skin conductance and heart rate) throughout the study.
Pain is an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience that can be regulated by many different cognitive mechanisms. We compared the regulatory qualities of two different meditation practices during noxious thermal stimuli: Focused Attention, directed at a fixation cross away from the stimulation, which could regulate negative affect through a sensory gating mechanism; and Open Monitoring, which could regulate negative affect through a mechanism of nonjudgmental, nonreactive awareness of sensory experience. Here, we report behavioral data from a comparison between novice and long-term meditation practitioners (long-term meditators, LTMs) using these techniques. LTMs, compared to novices, had a significant reduction of self-reported unpleasantness, but not intensity, of painful stimuli while practicing Open Monitoring. No significant effects were found for FA. This finding illuminates the possible regulatory mechanism of meditation-based clinical interventions like Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR). Implications are discussed in the broader context of training-induced changes in trait emotion regulation.
This study evaluated mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT), a group intervention designed to train recovered recurrently depressed patients to disengage from dysphoria-activated depressogenic thinking that may mediate relapse/recurrence. Recovered recurrently depressed patients (n = 145) were randomized to continue with treatment as usual or, in addition, to receive MBCT. Relapse/recurrence to major depression was assessed over a 60-week study period. For patients with 3 or more previous episodes of depression (77% of the sample), MBCT significantly reduced risk of relapse/recurrence. For patients with only 2 previous episodes, MBCT did not reduce relapse/recurrence. MBCT offers a promising cost-efficient psychological approach to preventing relapse/recurrence in recovered recurrently depressed patients.
Metacognitive awareness is a cognitive set in which negative thoughts/feelings are experienced as mental events, rather than as the self. The authors hypothesized that (a) reduced metacognitive awareness would be associated with vulnerability to depression and (b) cognitive therapy (CT) and mindfulness-based CT (MBCT) would reduce depressive relapse by increasing metacognitive awareness. They found (a) accessibility of metacognitive sets to depressive cues was less in a vulnerable group (residually depressed patients) than in nondepressed controls; (b) accessibility of metacognitive sets predicted relapse in residually depressed patients; (c) where CT reduced relapse in residually depressed patients, it increased accessibility of metacognitive sets; and (d) where MBCT reduced relapse in recovered depressed patients, it increased accessibility of metacognitive sets. CT and MBCT may reduce relapse by changing relationships to negative thoughts rather than by changing belief in thought content.
Mindfulness is an attribute of consciousness long believed to promote well-being. This research provides a theoretical and empirical examination of the role of mindfulness in psychological well-being. The development and psychometric properties of the dispositional Mindful Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS) are described. Correlational, quasi-experimental, and laboratory studies then show that the MAAS measures a unique quality of consciousness that is related to a variety of well-being constructs, that differentiates mindfulness practitioners from others, and that is associated with enhanced self-awareness. An experience-sampling study shows that both dispositional and state mindfulness predict self-regulated behavior and positive emotional states. Finally, a clinical intervention study with cancer patients demonstrates that increases in mindfulness over time relate to declines in mood disturbance and stress.
Human beings use language to shape their world: to structure it and give it meaning. Language builds our skyscrapers, imparts the strength to our steel, creates the elegance of our mathematics, and forms our art’s depiction of beauty. Language has been the source of so much human achievement that it is only natural that we look to it first to identify a problem and craft a solution. But it is precisely because language can be so useful that it can also be problematic. Language not only enables human achievements, but also our ability to project fearsome futures, to compare ourselves to unrealistic ideals and find ourselves wanting, or to torment our souls with the finitude of life itself. Language is at the core of the remarkable human tendency to suffer in the midst of plenty.
Interest in mindfulness and its enhancement has burgeoned in recent years. In this article, we discuss in detail the nature of mindfulness and its relation to other, established theories of attention and awareness in day-to-day life. We then examine theory and evidence for the role of mindfulness in curtailing negative functioning and enhancing positive outcomes in several important life domains, including mental health, physical health, behavioral regulation, and interpersonal relationships. The processes through which mindfulness is theorized to have its beneficial effects are then discussed, along with proposed directions for theoretical development and empirical research.
Positive emotions have a significant influence on mental and physical health. Their role in the elderly’s wellbeing has been
established in numerous studies. It is therefore worthwhile to explore ways in which elderly people can increase the number
of positive experiences in their daily lives. This paper describes two Virtual Environments (VEs) that were used as mood induction
procedures (MIPs) for this population. In addition, the VEs’ efficacy at increasing joy and relaxation in elderly users is
analyzed. The VEs contain exercises for generating positive-autobiographic memories, mindfulness and slow breathing rhythms.
The total sample comprised 18 participants over 55 years old who used the VEs on two occasions. Twelve of them used the joy
environment, while 16 used the relaxation environment. Moods before and after each session were assessed using Visual Analogical
Scales. After using both VEs, results indicated significant increases in joy and relaxation and significant decreases in sadness
and anxiety. The participants also indicated low levels of difficulty of use and high levels of satisfaction and sense of
presence. Hence, the VEs demonstrate their usefulness at promoting positive affects and enhancing the wellbeing of elderly
people.
Elaborating on our understanding of the construct of mindfulness is currently a priority as mindfulness-based therapeutic interventions proliferate (Bishop et al., 2004). Two studies examined the relationship between measures of everyday mindfulness, mindfulness during meditation, and the five-factor model per-sonality domains. These studies also investigated the effect of sitting meditation on mood. Two samples were largely nave to formal sitting meditation, and the third sample was screened for meditation experi-ence. The first study found that everyday mindfulness correlated positively with agreeableness and consci-entiousness, and correlated negatively with neuroticism. Little to no relationship was found between mindfulness during meditation and everyday mindfulness across all three samples. Changes in mood fol-lowing meditation varied across studies.
This paper describes the nature and information processing requirements of detached mindfulness. The construct emerged from the self-regulatory information processing theory of emotional disorder (Wells & Matthews, 1994), and is viewed as a metacognitive state that facilitates change in core underlying pathological processes. Detached mindfulness has multiple components, requiring the activation of metacognitive knowledge, metacognitive monitoring and control, suspension of conceptual processing, attentional flexibility, and a de-centered relationship with thoughts. A model of the cognitive structures and processes supporting the state is presented. Implications of the model for the scientific development and effective use of mindfulness techniques are discussed. Ten techniques for rapidly achieving detached mindfulness in the course of metacognitive therapy are described.
The aim of the study was to develop and test the feasibility of a three months web-based intervention, delivered by a smartphone to support self-management in patients with type 2 diabetes.
The intervention included use of a smartphone enabling access to daily web-based diaries and individualized written situational feedback. The participants registered their eating behavior, medication taking, physical activities and emotions three times daily using the mobile device. They also registered their fasting blood glucose level in the morning diary. A therapist had immediate access to submitted diaries and used the situational information to formulate a personalized feedback based on Acceptance Commitment Therapy. The purpose of the diaries and the situational feedback was to stimulate self-management.
Eleven of t