The Effect of Mindfulness-Based Therapy on Anxiety and Depression: A Meta-Analytic Review

Fuente: ERIC Institute of Education Sciences
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Main Authors: Hofmann, Stefan G., Sawyer, Alice T., Witt, Ashley A., Oh, Diana
Format: Recurso educativo Open Access
Language:en
Published: 2010
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author Hofmann, Stefan G.
Sawyer, Alice T.
Witt, Ashley A.
Oh, Diana
author_facet Hofmann, Stefan G.
Sawyer, Alice T.
Witt, Ashley A.
Oh, Diana
Hofmann, Stefan G.
Sawyer, Alice T.
Witt, Ashley A.
Oh, Diana
collection Education Resources Information Center
contents The Effect of Mindfulness-Based Therapy on Anxiety and Depression: A Meta-Analytic Review Hofmann, Stefan G. Sawyer, Alice T. Witt, Ashley A. Oh, Diana Intervention Patients Effect Size Therapy Depression (Psychology) Anxiety Outcomes of Treatment Symptoms (Individual Disorders) Databases Meta Analysis Bibliographies Psychological Studies Objective: Although mindfulness-based therapy has become a popular treatment, little is known about its efficacy. Therefore, our objective was to conduct an effect size analysis of this popular intervention for anxiety and mood symptoms in clinical samples. Method: We conducted a literature search using PubMed, PsycINFO, the Cochrane Library, and manual searches. Our meta-analysis was based on 39 studies totaling 1,140 participants receiving mindfulness-based therapy for a range of conditions, including cancer, generalized anxiety disorder, depression, and other psychiatric or medical conditions. Results: Effect size estimates suggest that mindfulness-based therapy was moderately effective for improving anxiety (Hedges's g = 0.63) and mood symptoms (Hedges's g = 0.59) from pre- to posttreatment in the overall sample. In patients with anxiety and mood disorders, this intervention was associated with effect sizes (Hedges's g) of 0.97 and 0.95 for improving anxiety and mood symptoms, respectively. These effect sizes were robust, were unrelated to publication year or number of treatment sessions, and were maintained over follow-up. Conclusions: These results suggest that mindfulness-based therapy is a promising intervention for treating anxiety and mood problems in clinical populations. (Contains 3 tables, 3 figures and 2 footnotes.)
format Recurso educativo Open Access
id eric_EJ878755
institution ERIC Institute of Education Sciences
language en
publishDate 2010
record_format eric
spellingShingle The Effect of Mindfulness-Based Therapy on Anxiety and Depression: A Meta-Analytic Review
Hofmann, Stefan G.
Sawyer, Alice T.
Witt, Ashley A.
Oh, Diana
Intervention
Patients
Effect Size
Therapy
Depression (Psychology)
Anxiety
Outcomes of Treatment
Symptoms (Individual Disorders)
Databases
Meta Analysis
Bibliographies
Psychological Studies
The Effect of Mindfulness-Based Therapy on Anxiety and Depression: A Meta-Analytic Review Hofmann, Stefan G. Sawyer, Alice T. Witt, Ashley A. Oh, Diana Intervention Patients Effect Size Therapy Depression (Psychology) Anxiety Outcomes of Treatment Symptoms (Individual Disorders) Databases Meta Analysis Bibliographies Psychological Studies Objective: Although mindfulness-based therapy has become a popular treatment, little is known about its efficacy. Therefore, our objective was to conduct an effect size analysis of this popular intervention for anxiety and mood symptoms in clinical samples. Method: We conducted a literature search using PubMed, PsycINFO, the Cochrane Library, and manual searches. Our meta-analysis was based on 39 studies totaling 1,140 participants receiving mindfulness-based therapy for a range of conditions, including cancer, generalized anxiety disorder, depression, and other psychiatric or medical conditions. Results: Effect size estimates suggest that mindfulness-based therapy was moderately effective for improving anxiety (Hedges's g = 0.63) and mood symptoms (Hedges's g = 0.59) from pre- to posttreatment in the overall sample. In patients with anxiety and mood disorders, this intervention was associated with effect sizes (Hedges's g) of 0.97 and 0.95 for improving anxiety and mood symptoms, respectively. These effect sizes were robust, were unrelated to publication year or number of treatment sessions, and were maintained over follow-up. Conclusions: These results suggest that mindfulness-based therapy is a promising intervention for treating anxiety and mood problems in clinical populations. (Contains 3 tables, 3 figures and 2 footnotes.)
title The Effect of Mindfulness-Based Therapy on Anxiety and Depression: A Meta-Analytic Review
topic Intervention
Patients
Effect Size
Therapy
Depression (Psychology)
Anxiety
Outcomes of Treatment
Symptoms (Individual Disorders)
Databases
Meta Analysis
Bibliographies
Psychological Studies
url https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ878755