Mindfulness Meditation Leads To Increased Dispositional Mindfulness And Interoceptive Awareness Linked To A Reduced Dissociative Tendency

Mindfulness-Based Interventions and Body Awareness

“…Improvements in Not-Worrying contradict prior studies that found no effect on this facet of BA [ 26 , 27 , 84 ]. However, our results are in line with a more recent study that found a significant effect of a 7-week Mindfulness-Oriented Meditation intervention on Not-Worrying in a sample of healthy individuals [ 85 ]. There are several potential explanations for the inconsistency of results.…”

“…Compared to control group participants, those who completed the MBCT reported an increased ability to: notice and perceive comfortable, uncomfortable, and neutral body sensations (FBSQ Perception and MAIA Noticing); regulate attention to body sensations (MAIA Attention Regulation); link body sensations and emotions in a differentiated way (MAIA Emotional Awareness and FBSQ Differentiation); use awareness of body sensations to regulate psychological distress (MAIA Self-Regulation and FBSQ Regulation); not worry when faced with sensations of pain or discomfort (MAIA Not-Worrying); listen to the body for insights (MAIA Body Listening); and experience the body as trustworthy (MAIA Trusting). These findings are in line with prior studies showing significant improvements in various MAIA facets after an MBI in clinical [ 24 , 26 , 84 ] and non-clinical populations [ 27 , 85 ].…”

“…Improvements in the facet of Noticing were surprising because prior studies failed to find this effect [ 24 , 26 , 27 , 85 ]. The absence of an effect on Noticing has been previously explained by the absence of a significant effect of MBIs on interoceptive accuracy [ 86 ].…”

“…First, some studies lacked adequate power [ 24 ] ( N = 29), which may have prevented them from finding an effect. Second, some studies were conducted on a population of healthy adults [ 85 ], meaning there may have been little room for improvement. Baseline levels of Noticing in the mindfulness group in the study by D’Antoni and colleagues [ 85 ] were higher (3.19) than baseline levels in the present study (2.44).…”

“…Second, some studies were conducted on a population of healthy adults [ 85 ], meaning there may have been little room for improvement. Baseline levels of Noticing in the mindfulness group in the study by D’Antoni and colleagues [ 85 ] were higher (3.19) than baseline levels in the present study (2.44). Finally, other studies used shorter or adapted versions of an MBI [ 26 , 27 ], which may have lacked the assiduous training employed in standard 8-week courses, thereby diminishing the effect of the intervention on Noticing.…”