Full awareness or mindfulness in the practice of current clinical psychology and psychiatry: Explanatory contributions

Abstract

Introduction: In accordance with relevant historical sources and the objective of reducing the conceptual ambiguity surrounding full awareness or mindfulness, it should be emphasized that the aim of these concepts is better self-regulation and that the task of the observer is to remain equanimous between attraction and repulsion of what is being observed. Methods: A search for the word or descriptor "mindfulness" with the use of modern search engines and research databases with thesaurus, such as Medline-PubMed, PsycINFO, Embase, the Cochrane Library and InDICEs-CSIC, results in such a high number of records that this is, in practice, unmanageable. Therefore, this article, which is essentially a theoretical review and an opinion study, will only take into consideration the most important, novel or signifi cant fi ndings. Results: Full awareness is adjuvant to the treatment of certain mental disorders. It is known that meditation training can improve the affective response by reducing the reactivity of the amygdala and that practicing meditation leads to a reduction of physiological stress markers. However, it is also true that we are witnessing a trend that is not without confusion as well as an exponentially growing interest in mindfulness, in both the scientifi c and non-scientifi c fi elds. Conclusions: This paper aims to clarify the matter of concept, validity and psychological-psychiatric usefulness of full awareness or mindfulness currently and in the foreseeable future.