Revealing subgroup-specific mechanisms of change via moderated mediation: A meditation intervention example.
Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology September 28, 2023 Christian A. Webb, Matthew J. Hirshberg, Oscar González et al. 6 citations
Mechanisms explaining why meditation training works may differ across patient subgroups. Prior research often collapsed heterogeneous groups, obscuring these differences. Using data from 662 participants, researchers developed a Personalized Advantage Index (PAI) to identify individuals likely to benefit more from a meditation app. A moderated mediation analysis showed that mindfulness acquisition mediated better outcomes only for those with higher PAI scores. This suggests that subgroup-specific mediators should be considered to clarify how psychosocial interventions work and to match individuals to the most beneficial treatment.