Understanding the Impact of Meditative Homework on Metacognitive Processes in the Context of Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT)

NCT ID: NCT00938873

Last Updated: 2012-02-29

Study Results

Results pending

The study team has not published outcome measurements, participant flow, or safety data for this trial yet. Check back later for updates.

Basic Information

Get a concise snapshot of the trial, including recruitment status, study phase, enrollment targets, and key timeline milestones.

Recruitment Status

COMPLETED

Total Enrollment

7 participants

Study Classification

OBSERVATIONAL

Study Start Date

2009-12-31

Study Completion Date

2011-04-30

Brief Summary

Review the sponsor-provided synopsis that highlights what the study is about and why it is being conducted.

Mindfulness based cognitive therapy (MBCT) is a group psycho-educational treatment designed to reduce the risk of recurrent depression by integrating mindfulness based meditation practices with cognitive therapy techniques. MBCT comprises eight weekly two-hour group sessions. Additionally, participants are required to commit to one hour per day of between sessions meditative homework assignments six days per week. Existing quantitative research suggest that MBCT is an effective intervention for preventing depressive relapse in patients with three or more episodes of depression (Teasdale et al.2000, Ma \& Teasdale, 2004). The focus of qualitative research has been on evaluating the acceptability of MBCT for various clinical populations; participants' accounts have been positive indicating MBCT may be a potential therapeutic tool for treating older adults (Graham \& Senthinathan, 2007), psychosis (Abba, Chadwick, \& Stevenson, 2008), Parkinson's disease (Fitzpatrick, Simpson, \& Smith, 2010) as well as acute depression (Mason \& Hargreaves, 2001).

The benefits of undertaking meditative mindfulness practice in the context of MBCT have been linked to changes in metacognitive processes. Two distinct multi-level information processing frameworks dealing with how thoughts are processed from a metacognitive perspective have been proposed: The Interacting Cognitive Subsystems (ICS; Teasdale, 1999a, 1999b) and the Self Regulatory Executive Function (S-REF; Wells, 2000) theory. The ICS framework forms a rationale for meditative aspects of the MBCT programme. The S-REF model differs from the ICS theory in its conceptualisation of the object or 'being' mode of metacognitive processing.

Regular daily practice of mindfulness meditation has been regarded as among the most essential aspects of mindfulness programmes (Kabat-Zinn, 1990; Mason \& Hargreaves, 2001). Existing studies, with their focus on effectiveness or acceptability of MBCT as an intervention, have thus far excluded an important aspect of the course involving the experience of meditative homework assignments. Therefore, the aim of this study was to explore subjective accounts of the meaning of carrying out meditative homework assignments in the context of a National Health Service (NHS) run MBCT course. The research questions focused on the impact of meditative homework on thought processes as well as an exploration of barriers and facilitating factors from a participant's perspective.Six individual in-depth interviews were conducted with participants all of whom had completed the full MBCT programme. Interpretive phenomenological Analysis (IPA) was used as the methodology for analysing interview transcripts. Data analysis began with a detailed examination of one case until a thorough analysis was completed after which subsequent cases were analysed. Finally a cross case analysis was carried out where individual themes were interrogated for similarities and differences (Smith, et al., 2009).

Two master themes were presented: 'The relationship of meditative homework to metacognitive experience' and 'Motivating and discouraging factors for engagement in meditative practice'. Results reveal a transformation in metacognitive processes as a result of undertaking meditative homework. The subjective experience of metacognitive processes is examined in the context of existing psychological theories including the ICS (Teasdale, 1999a, 1999b) as well as the S-REF (Wells, 2000) theory involving metacognitions. A model for perceived facilitating factors and difficulties experienced in carrying out meditative homework is constructed based on the Integrated Theoretical Foundations Model for CBT homework assignment (Kazantzis, et al., 2005). The model explores participants' motivation in three stages of the homework process: firstly during assignment of the meditative homework task, secondly in completing the planned task and finally carrying out review of the task in question. Implications of the present study are discussed in relation to psychological literature, homework assignment and the practise of MBCT.

Detailed Description

Dive into the extended narrative that explains the scientific background, objectives, and procedures in greater depth.

Conditions

See the medical conditions and disease areas that this research is targeting or investigating.

Depression

Keywords

Explore important study keywords that can help with search, categorization, and topic discovery.

MBCT identity depression recurrent homework

Study Design

Understand how the trial is structured, including allocation methods, masking strategies, primary purpose, and other design elements.

Observational Model Type

CASE_ONLY

Study Time Perspective

RETROSPECTIVE

Study Groups

Review each arm or cohort in the study, along with the interventions and objectives associated with them.

Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy

The present study will use participants who have experienced more than three episodes of depression as judged by South London and Maudsley NHS Trust. No restrictions are placed in terms of participants' use of antidepressant medication. Participants will be 18 to 65 years old and would have participated in an MBCT course run by South London and Maudsley NHS Trust.

Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT)

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Mindfulness based cognitive therapy (MBCT) is a group psycho-educational treatment designed to reduce the risk of recurrent depression by integrating mindfulness based meditation practices with cognitive therapy techniques. MBCT comprises eight weekly two-hour group sessions with an additional one hour daily 6 days a week for meditative homework practice.

Interventions

Learn about the drugs, procedures, or behavioral strategies being tested and how they are applied within this trial.

Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT)

Mindfulness based cognitive therapy (MBCT) is a group psycho-educational treatment designed to reduce the risk of recurrent depression by integrating mindfulness based meditation practices with cognitive therapy techniques. MBCT comprises eight weekly two-hour group sessions with an additional one hour daily 6 days a week for meditative homework practice.

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Other Intervention Names

Discover alternative or legacy names that may be used to describe the listed interventions across different sources.

MBCT

Eligibility Criteria

Check the participation requirements, including inclusion and exclusion rules, age limits, and whether healthy volunteers are accepted.

Inclusion Criteria

* Participants will be 18 to 65 years of age and recruited through an NHS Trust offering MBCT.

Exclusion Criteria

* These authors suggest that MBCT has no significant effect on reducing the relapse rates of depression in patients with ≤ 2 episodes of depression.
* Therefore the present study will use participants who have experienced more than three episodes of depression as judged by the relevant NHS Trust.
* No restrictions are placed in terms of participants' use of antidepressant medication.


* Potential participants engaging in yoga or Buddhist meditation more than twice a week are excluded as these practices significantly overlap with the MBCT program.
Minimum Eligible Age

18 Years

Maximum Eligible Age

65 Years

Eligible Sex

ALL

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sponsors

Meet the organizations funding or collaborating on the study and learn about their roles.

University of East London

OTHER

Sponsor Role collaborator

South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust

OTHER

Sponsor Role collaborator

Lahtinen, Marika

OTHER

Sponsor Role lead

Responsible Party

Identify the individual or organization who holds primary responsibility for the study information submitted to regulators.

Marika Lahtinen

Dr

Responsibility Role PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Principal Investigators

Learn about the lead researchers overseeing the trial and their institutional affiliations.

Marika Lahtinen

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

University of East London

Locations

Explore where the study is taking place and check the recruitment status at each participating site.

South London & Maudsley NHS Trust

London, London, United Kingdom

Site Status

Countries

Review the countries where the study has at least one active or historical site.

United Kingdom

Related Links

Access external resources that provide additional context or updates about the study.

http://mbct.co.uk/

Resources for Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT)

Other Identifiers

Review additional registry numbers or institutional identifiers associated with this trial.

1-Lahtinen

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id