Abstract
Mindfulness is an attribute of consciousness long believed to promote well-being. This research provides a theoretical and empirical examination of the role of mindfulness in psychological well-being. The development and psychometric properties of the dispositional Mindful Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS) are described. Correlational, quasi-experimental, and laboratory studies then show that the MAAS measures a unique quality of consciousness that is related to a variety of well-being constructs, that differentiates mindfulness practitioners from others, and that is associated with enhanced self-awareness. An experience-sampling study shows that both dispositional and state mindfulness predict self-regulated behavior and positive emotional states. Finally, a clinical intervention study with cancer patients demonstrates that increases in mindfulness over time relate to declines in mood disturbance and stress.
Keywords
MindfulnessPsychologyExperience sampling methodMoodWell-beingClinical psychologyConsciousnessPsychotherapistIntervention (counseling)Social psychology
Affiliated Institutions
Related Publications
Effects of Acute Exercise on Mood and Well-Being in Patients with Major Depressive Disorder
Although 30 min of either moderate-intensity treadmill exercise or quiet rest is sufficient to improve the mood and well-being of patients with MDD, exercise appears to have a g...
Optimism, coping, and health: Assessment and implications of generalized outcome expectancies.
This article describes a scale measuring dispositional optimism, defined in terms of generalized outcome expectancies. Two preliminary studies assessed the scale's psychometric ...
Perils and promise in defining and measuring mindfulness: Observations from experience.
As mindfulness research advances on a variety of fronts, it has become increasingly important to carefully define and measure the construct. In this commentary, we draw from our...
Interactive Effects of the Affect Quality and Directional Focus of Mental Imagery on Pain Analgesia
College students (25 men and 25 women) were randomly assigned (within sex) to each of the 4 factorial groups, based on manipulation of affect quality (positive vs. negative) and...
Handbook Of Mental Control
I. INTRODUCTION. 1. Changing Our Minds: An Introduction to Mental Control, Daniel M. Wegner and James W. Pennebaker. 2. Mental Control: Lessons from Our Past, David J. Schneider...
Publication Info
- Year
- 2003
- Type
- article
- Volume
- 84
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 822-848
- Citations
- 12651
- Access
- Closed
External Links
Social Impact
Altmetric
PlumX Metrics
Social media, news, blog, policy document mentions
Citation Metrics
12651
OpenAlex
Cite This
Kirk Warren Brown,
Richard M. Ryan
(2003).
The benefits of being present: Mindfulness and its role in psychological well-being..
Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
, 84
(4)
, 822-848.
https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.84.4.822
Identifiers
- DOI
- 10.1037/0022-3514.84.4.822