Changes in mindfulness facets across yoga, CBT and stress education in individuals with generalized anxiety disorder.

In generalized anxiety disorder, different treatments improve distinct aspects of mindfulness. A clinical trial randomly assigned 226 individuals with GAD to 12 weeks of Kundalini Yoga, cognitive behavioral therapy, or stress education. The Non-judge, Act with Awareness, and Non-react facets of mindfulness increased significantly during treatment, while the Observe and Describe facets did not. Improvement in Acting with Awareness was significantly greater for Kundalini Yoga than for cognitive behavioral therapy. These findings suggest that behavioral treatments can influence specific mindfulness components differently.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Improving mindfulness is an important treatment target for generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). However, less is known about how different treatments impact specific aspects of mindfulness. In a clinical trial (Simon et al., 2021), 226 individuals with GAD were randomized to 12 weeks of Kundalini Yoga (KY), cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) or stress education (SE). To examine whether specific facets of mindfulness, as measured by the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ) change more than others across treatment and between treatments, we ran a multi-variate multilevel growth curve model (MMLM). Results indicated that while the Non-judge, Act with Awareness, and Non-react facets increased significantly during treatment, the Observe and Describe facets did not. Improvement in the Acting with Awareness facet during treatment was significantly greater for KY than CBT. These findings reveal the need to better understand how behavioral treatments can influence specific components of mindfulness for those with anxiety.