a second generation of mindfulness-based intervention

8/10/2019 A Second Generation of Mindfulness-based Intervention

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A New Generation of Mindfulness-based Intervention

In one of our research papers that was published this summer in the journal

Mindfulness,we identified and discussed a recent development in mindfulness research and

practice. Until a few years ago, mindfulness research within psychology has primarily

focussed on what have been termed First Generation Mindfulness-Based Interventions(FG-

MBIs). FG-MBIs refer to interventions such asMindfulness-Based Stress Reduction(MBSR)

developed by Kabat-Zinn in the late 1970s andMindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy(MBCT)

developed by Segal, Williams, and Teasdale in 2002. According to Professor Nirbhay Singh

and colleagues, one of the primary purposes and achievements of FG-MBIs has been

gaining acceptance of mindfulness within Western clinical and scientific domains.

However, due to the speed at which mindfulness has been integrated into western

research and public healthcare settings, concerns have been raised by scientists and

Buddhist teachers regarding the authenticity of FG-MBIs and whether they actually teach

mindfulness in a manner that still bears any resemblance to the traditional Buddhist model.
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These concerns do not detract from the fact that there is a growing evidence-base that

supports the efficacy of FGMBIs as clinical and behavioural interventions, but they give

rise to a number of questions that have important implications for mindfulness research

and practice:

1. If mindfulness is efficacious when it is taught in isolation of many of the practices

and principles that are traditionally deemed to make it effective, then how much

more effective will it be when taught in a manner that includes and embodies these

supporting elements?

2. Is it ethically correct to inform service users and members of the public that they are

receiving training in a method that is grounded in Buddhist practice (a claim often

made about FG-MBIs), when in fact this is not the case?

3. Is it essential to de-spiritualise psychological interventions before they can be used

in clinical contexts, orbased on a what-works approach can interventions that

are openly spiritual in nature be considered as viable and mainstream public

healthcare treatments?

In an attempt to overcome some of the above issues concerning FG-MBIs, efforts

have been made in recent years to formulate and empirically evaluate a second generation

of mindfulness-based interventions. Second Generation Mindfulness-based Interventions(SG-

MBIs)are still intended to be used in public healthcare contexts (i.e., they are still secular in

nature) butas explained in the following quote from our recently publishedMindfulness
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paperthey are openly spiritual in nature and are more traditional in the manner in which

they construct and teach mindfulness:

Due to the suggestion that some individuals may prefer to be trained in a version of mindfulness that

more closely resembles a traditional Buddhist approach, recent years have witnessed the development

and early-stage evaluation of several Second Generation Mindfulness-Based Interventions (SG-

MBIs) Although SG-MBIs still follow a secular format that is suitable for delivery within

Western applied settings, they are overtly spiritual in aspect and teach mindfulness within a practice

infrastructure that integrates what would traditionally be deemed as prerequisites for effective

spiritual and meditative development. At the most basic (but by no means the least profound) level,

such prerequisites include each element of the Noble Eightfold Path. The Noble Eightfold Path

comprises each of the three quintessential Buddhist teaching and practice principles of (i) wisdom

(i.e., right view, right intention), (ii) ethical conduct (i.e., right speech, right action, right livelihood),

and (iii) meditation (i.e., right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration). Each of these three

fundamental elements (Sanskrit: trishikshathe three trainings) must be present in any path of

practice that claims to expound or be grounded in authentic Buddhadharma and they apply to (and

form the basis of) the Fundamental or Theravada vehicle just as much as they do the Mahayana

and Vajrayana Buddhist vehicles. Thus, for mindfulness practice to be effective, it must be taught as

part of a rounded spiritual path and it must be taught by a spiritual guide that can transmit the

teachings in an authentic manner.


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The development and empirical evaluation of a second generation of mindfulness-

based intervention appears to represent an emerging trend in mindfulness research.

Outcomes from our own research work with the eight-week SG-MBI known asMeditation

Awareness Training (MAT) suggest that SG-MBIs may have applications in the treatment of

(i) workaholism, (ii) work-related stress, (iii) stress, (iv) anxiety, (v) depression, (vi)

schizophrenia, and (vii) pathological gambling. Recent MAT studies that we have

conducted have also demonstrated that SG-MBIs can help to improve work effectiveness,

decision-making competency, and leadership/management skills more generally. SG-MBI

studies by other researchers also indicate a range of clinical and non-clinical applications

for SG-MBIs. For example, studies led by Professor Nirbhay Singh indicate that SG-MBIs

may have utility as (i) a smoking cessation program for individuals with mild intellectual

disabilities, (ii) an anger regulation method for individuals with schizophrenia, and (iii) a

training and support program for parents in order to reduce the aggressive and disruptive

behaviour of their children/adolescents. However, it needs to be remembered that research

into SG-MBIs is still at a very early stage and so although the abovementioned outcomes

are promising, further empirical investigation is obviously required. Furthermore, it is our

view that rather than directly compete with FG-MBIs, SG-MBIs simply provide an

alternative approach to practising mindfulness thatfor some individualsmay be more

appealing.


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Please note: This article provides a summary of, and is adapted from, a discussion that first appeared in a

paper we published in the journalMindfulness.

Ven Edo Shonin & Ven William Van Gordon

Further Reading

Carrette, J., & King, R. (2005). Selling spirituality: The silent takeover of religion. New York:

Routledge.

Kabat-Zinn, J. (1994). Wherever you go, there you are: Mindfulness meditation in everyday life. New

York: Hyperion.

McWilliams, S. A. (2014). Foundations of Mindfulness and Contemplation: Traditional

and Contemporary Perspectives. International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction,

12,116-128.

Rosch, E. (2007). More than mindfulness: when you have a tiger by the tail, let it eat you.

Psychological Inquiry, 18, 258-264.

*Shonin, E., & Van Gordon, W. (2014) Managers experiences of Meditation Awareness

Training.Mindfulness,DOI: 10.1007/s12671-014-0334-y. [Source Article].

Shonin, E., Van Gordon, W., & Griffiths, M. D. (2013a). Mindfulness-based interventions:

Towards mindful clinical integration. Frontiers in Psychology, 4, 1-4. DOI:

10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00194.

Shonin, E.,Van Gordon, W., & Griffiths, M. D. (2014c). The treatment of workaholism

with Meditation Awareness Training: A case study.Explore: The Journal of Science and

Healing, 10, 193-195.
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Shonin, E., Van Gordon, W., Dunn, T., Singh, N., & Griffiths, M. D. (2014d). Meditation

Awareness Training for work-related wellbeing and job performance: A randomized

controlled trial. International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction, DOI

10.1007/s11469-014-9513-2.

Shonin, E., Van Gordon, W., & Griffiths, M. D. (2014e). Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

(CBT) and Meditation Awareness Training (MAT) for the treatment of co-occurring

schizophrenia with pathological gambling: A case study. International Journal of Mental

Health and Addiction, 12, 181-196.

Shonin, E., Van Gordon W., & Griffiths M. D. (2013). Meditation Awareness Training

(MAT) for improved psychological wellbeing: A qualitative examination of participant

experiences.Journal ofReligion and Health, 53, 849-863.

Singh, N. N., Lancioni, G. E., Winton, A. S. W., Singh, J. Curtis, W. J., Wahler, R. G., &

McAleavey, K. M. (2007). Mindful parenting decreases aggression and increases social

behavior in children with developmental disabilities. Behavior Modification, 31,749-771.

Singh, N. N., Lancioni, G. E., Winton, A. S. W., Karazia, B. T., Singh, A. D. A., Singh,

A. N. A., & Singh, J. (2013). A mindfulness-based smoking cessation program for

individuals with mild intellectual disability. Mindfulness, 4,148-157.

Singh, N. N., Lancioni, G. E., Winton, A. S. W., Karazsia, B. T., & Singh, J. (2014a).Mindfulness-Based Positive Behavior Support (MBPBS) for mothers of adolescents

with autism spectrum disorders: Effects on adolescents behavior and parental stress.

Mindfulness,DOI: 10.1007/s12671-014-0321-3.

Singh, N. N., Lancioni, G. E., Myers, R. E., Karazsia, B. T., Winton, A. S. W., & Singh, J.

(2014b). A randomized controlled trial of a mindfulness-based smoking cessation

program for individuals with mild intellectual disability. International Journal of

Mental Health and Addiction, 12, 153-168.

Singh, N. N., Lancioni, G. E., Karazsia, B. T., Winton, A. S. W., Singh, J., & Wahler, R. G.

(2014c). Shenpa and compassionate abiding: Mindfulness-based practices for anger

and aggression by individuals with schizophrenia. International Journal of Mental

Health and Addiction,12, 138-152.


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Van Gordon, W., Shonin, E., Sumich, A., Sundin, E., & Griffiths, M. D. (2014b).

Meditation Awareness Training (MAT) for psychological wellbeing in a sub-clinical

sample of university students: A controlled pilot study.Mindfulness, 5, 381-391.

Van Gordon, W., Shonin, E., Zangeneh, M., & Griffiths, M. D. (2014). Work-relatedmental health and job performance: Can mindfulness help? International Journal of

Mental Health and Addiction, 12, 129-137.

Van Gordon, W., Shonin, E., & Griffiths, M. D. (2015).Mindfulness and the Four Noble

Truths. In: Shonin, E., Van Gordon W., & Singh, N. N. (Eds). Buddhist Foundations of

Mindfulness. New York: Springer.

a second generation of mindfulness-based intervention

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