The Potential Use of the Sensory Profile Assessment Tool for Personalized Sensory Case Selection in Mindfulness-Based Interventions.

Abstract

Objectives: While a personalized approach is highly valued for Mindfulness-Based Interventions (MBIs), there exist no screening tools which could identify participantpreferences.24 August 2019Methods: A cross-over controlled trial study conducted on 20 volunteer nurses, who appearto be healthy, working in a university hospital, aged 20-55 years old, from December 2018 to March 2019. The participants were assigned randomly to either relaxation on-site or Mindfulness-Based Flow Practice (MBFP) in the residential retreat program. Each participantwas self-evaluated using The Thai Sensory Profile Assessment Tool (TSPA). The effectiveness of MBFP was measured quantitatively by the change of serum cortisol andqualitatively from satisfaction interviews. Results: The carry-over effect was not significant, and the treatment effect size was 4.68 mg/dl 95% CI 1.5 – 7.3, p 0.05. It was noted that the Movement and Touch sensorypreference group had a clearly different direction of cortisol change while the Visual and Auditory sensory preference showed no difference.Conclusions: Increasing cortisol in the context of positive feedback in our study may be interpreted as a mismatch in the level of sensory exposure to their threshold. The TSPA evaluation has potential to be a feasible tool for MBI sensory exposure adjustment to accurately match personal sensory processing styles.