Evans, S., Ferrando, S., Findler, M., Stowell, C., Smart, C., Haglin, D. (2008). Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for generalized anxiety disorder. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 22(4), 716–721.
| General Methodology | Small, pre-test post-test, non-experimental pilot study.
No control group.
Participants screened for inclusion/exclusion criteria, but otherwise self-selected. |
| Participants and Sample Size(s) | 11 (6 female, 5 male), mean age = 49 yrs, mean educ = 17 yrs, resulting from first screening 36 applicants down to 12, then dropping 1 from data analysis due to unrelated medical problem. |
| Conditions/Manipulations | 8-week mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) program |
| Dependent Measures included | Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) Penn State Worry Questionnaire (PSWQ) Profile of Mood States (POMS) Mindfulness Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS) |
| Other Measures | Anecdotal participant self-reports. |
| Results | Before MBCT: moderate levels of anxiety (BAI); pathological degree of worry (PSWQ); significant levels of anxiety and tension (POMS); mild levels of depression (BDI); mindful awareness significantly lower than normal (MAAS) After MBCT: statistically significant improvement on all scales except the MAAS; MAAS scores improved to approximately normal, though the change didn't reach statistical significance (due to small sample?); all participants completed the 8-week MBCT course; very positive anecdotal stories from participants. |
| Discussion/Conclusions | MBCT appears to be “a feasible and acceptable treatment for individuals with GAD” [pg 720]; stronger conclusions not possible because of design, and external validity (generalizability) difficult to predict. |
