Does the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire measure what we think it does? Construct validity evidence from an active controlled randomized clinical trial.

Abstract

The current study attempted a rigorous test of the construct validity of a widely used self-report measure of dispositional mindfulness, the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ), within the context of an active controlled randomized trial (n = 130). The trial included three arms: mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR), an active control condition that did not include instruction in mindfulness meditation (Health Enhancement Program, HEP), and a waitlist control condition. Partial evidence for the convergent validity of the FFMQ was shown in correlations at baseline between FFMQ facets and measures of psychological symptoms and psychological well-being. In addition, facets of the FFMQ were shown to increase over the course of an MBSR intervention relative to a waitlist control condition. However, the FFMQ failed to show discriminant validity. Specifically, facets of the FFMQ were shown to increase over the course of the HEP intervention relative to the waitlist control condition. MBSR and HEP, in contrast, did not differ in changes in FFMQ score over time. Implications of these findings for the measurement and theory of mindfulness and MBSR are discussed.

Reduced reward-driven eating accounts for the impact of a mindfulness-based diet and exercise intervention on weight loss: Data from the SHINE randomized controlled trial

“…It may be that these added components reduced the effect size of the between-arm difference in changes in perceived stress. This study potentially demonstrates the importance of comparing mindfulness interventions against active control conditions, as other rigorous tests of mindfulness-based interventions using active controls have found null results (Goldberg et al, 2015; MacCoon, MacLean, Davidson, Saron, & Lutz, 2014; Shallcross et al, 2015). …”

Dispositional Mindfulness in Daily Life: A Naturalistic Observation Study

“…Notably, some of our variables did attempt to capture such qualitative elements quantitatively Yet, its validity is ultimately not beyond question (44). Many have argued that self-reported trait measures of mindfulness have limited construct and ecological validity, because, as a construct that taps into experiential characteristics of the conscious mind, mindfulness is bound to partially escape reflective first-person assessment (19).…”

Efeito da Meditação Focada no Estresse e Mindfulness Disposicional em Universitários

“…Por exemplo, algumas evidências apontam que quando uma intervenção de meditação é comparada a grupos que recebem outro tipo de intervenção (grupo controle ativo), o tamanho de efeito da mudança de mindfulness é menor (Khoury et al, 2013), ou não são observadas diferenças significativas deste desfecho quando as intervenções são comparadas (Goldberg et al, 2015;Goyal et al, 2014). Por outro lado, existem resultados mostrando que meditadores experientes apresentam escores significativamente maiores de mindfulness, em comparação a não meditadores Barros et al, 2014;Soler et al, 2014), sendo que esta diferença é mediada pelo tempo e frequência de prática dos meditadores (Soler et al, 2014).…”

“…Por outro lado, existem resultados mostrando que meditadores experientes apresentam escores significativamente maiores de mindfulness, em comparação a não meditadores Barros et al, 2014;Soler et al, 2014), sendo que esta diferença é mediada pelo tempo e frequência de prática dos meditadores (Soler et al, 2014). Portanto, parece não haver uma uniformidade com relação ao efeito da meditação nas medidas de autorrelato de mindfulness, sendo que alguns autores questionam o grau em que estas medidas, tal como a FFMQ, de fato capturam o construto e refletem aspectos da prática, e discutem que estes instrumentos ainda precisam de mais estudos de validação (Goldberg et al, 2015).…”