TY - JOUR
T1 - Mind the Hype
T2 - A Critical Evaluation and Prescriptive Agenda for Research on Mindfulness and Meditation
AU - Van Dam, Nicholas T
AU - van Vugt, Marieke K
AU - Vago, David R
AU - Schmalzl, Laura
AU - Saron, Clifford D
AU - Olendzki, Andrew
AU - Meissner, Ted
AU - Lazar, Sara W
AU - Kerr, Catherine E
AU - Gorchov, Jolie
AU - Fox, Kieran C R
AU - Field, Brent A
AU - Britton, Willoughby B
AU - Brefczynski-Lewis, Julie A
AU - Meyer, David E
PY - 2018
Y1 - 2018
N2 - During the past two decades, mindfulness meditation has gone from being a fringe topic of scientific investigation to being an occasional replacement for psychotherapy, tool of corporate well-being, widely implemented educational practice, and "key to building more resilient soldiers." Yet the mindfulness movement and empirical evidence supporting it have not gone without criticism. Misinformation and poor methodology associated with past studies of mindfulness may lead public consumers to be harmed, misled, and disappointed. Addressing such concerns, the present article discusses the difficulties of defining mindfulness, delineates the proper scope of research into mindfulness practices, and explicates crucial methodological issues for interpreting results from investigations of mindfulness. For doing so, the authors draw on their diverse areas of expertise to review the present state of mindfulness research, comprehensively summarizing what we do and do not know, while providing a prescriptive agenda for contemplative science, with a particular focus on assessment, mindfulness training, possible adverse effects, and intersection with brain imaging. Our goals are to inform interested scientists, the news media, and the public, to minimize harm, curb poor research practices, and staunch the flow of misinformation about the benefits, costs, and future prospects of mindfulness meditation.
AB - During the past two decades, mindfulness meditation has gone from being a fringe topic of scientific investigation to being an occasional replacement for psychotherapy, tool of corporate well-being, widely implemented educational practice, and "key to building more resilient soldiers." Yet the mindfulness movement and empirical evidence supporting it have not gone without criticism. Misinformation and poor methodology associated with past studies of mindfulness may lead public consumers to be harmed, misled, and disappointed. Addressing such concerns, the present article discusses the difficulties of defining mindfulness, delineates the proper scope of research into mindfulness practices, and explicates crucial methodological issues for interpreting results from investigations of mindfulness. For doing so, the authors draw on their diverse areas of expertise to review the present state of mindfulness research, comprehensively summarizing what we do and do not know, while providing a prescriptive agenda for contemplative science, with a particular focus on assessment, mindfulness training, possible adverse effects, and intersection with brain imaging. Our goals are to inform interested scientists, the news media, and the public, to minimize harm, curb poor research practices, and staunch the flow of misinformation about the benefits, costs, and future prospects of mindfulness meditation.
KW - Journal Article
KW - TRANSCENDENTAL-MEDITATION
KW - FUNCTIONAL CONNECTIVITY
KW - RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED-TRIAL
KW - COGNITIVE-BEHAVIORAL THERAPY
KW - SOCIAL ANXIETY DISORDER
KW - RECURRENT DEPRESSION
KW - NEURAL MECHANISMS
KW - CLINICAL SCIENCE
KW - HUMAN BRAIN
KW - PSYCHOSOCIAL INTERVENTIONS
U2 - 10.1177/1745691617709589
DO - 10.1177/1745691617709589
M3 - Article
C2 - 29016274
VL - 13
SP - 36
EP - 61
JO - Perspectives on Psychological Science
JF - Perspectives on Psychological Science
SN - 1745-6916
IS - 1
ER -