The Effect of Self-Compassion on Mind-Wandering and Depression
It is reported that people spend nearly half of their waking hours mind-wandering. Mind-wandering has been described as the interruption of focus on a task by thoughts unrelated to that task. A seemingly unrelated concept is that of self-compassion, described as being open and receptive to one’s own experiences, as well as being kind and understanding to oneself. The relationship between these two concepts and depression is known. A previous study found that mind-wandering leads to a negative mood, which can increase the mind’s tendency to wander, creating a loop of sorts. While mind-wandering has been linked to better future planning and creative problem solving, it has been found to be harmful to physical and mental health. In addition, depressed individuals tend to mind-wander to negative topics, leading to an increase in depression. Self-compassion, on the other hand, leads to greater resilience, which decreases depression. What still remains to be explored is the interplay between self-compassion and mind-wandering, and how this affects the longitudinal change in depressive symptoms.
The current study aims to look into the effect of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (referred to as MBCT from onwards) on mind-wandering, self-compassion, and depressive symptoms. MBCT is a highly effective intervention, combining mindfulness and meditative practices with cognitive therapy. Two core components of MBCT is to focus on the present and to adopt an accepting attitude. The study hypothesizes that self-compassion will protect against the effects of mind-wandering on depression. As such, there will be an association with self-compassion and mind-wandering, and that this would help predict longitudinal results.
The sample included 40 participants who were divided into an eight-week MBCT + treatment-as-usual (ongoing medication or individual therapy) group or a waitlist + treatment-as-usual group. Other factors were controlled for, such as level of depression, gender, age, etc. Participants completed measures of self-compassion, mind-wandering, and self-reported depression prior to the study, and then continued to report depression levels throughout the study. Individuals with more severe depressive symptoms had higher mind-wandering and low self-compassion scores. As expected, MBCT increased self-compassion and reduced mind-wandering compared to the treatment-as-usual group. The findings showed that increases in mind-wandering were associated with increases in depressive severity only among those who decreased in self-compassion. This brings to light the protection self-compassion provides against effects of mind-wandering.
This study is important as it highlights the effect of self-compassion on depression, which is often thought to be associated with a negative view of oneself, judgement towards oneself, and self-blame. Self-compassion strengthens self-kindness, which will work at removing negative perceptions of oneself. In addition, this study highlights the role self-compassion measures can have on predicting clinical prognosis and chances of recovery. It also brings forth the effectiveness of MBCT, particularly in domains involving self-compassion. It also shows that MBCT does not necessarily directly affect depression levels – it targets protective and risk factors associated with depression. In this case, it decreases mind-wandering, which in turn increases self-compassion levels and decreases depression levels. In the future, it would be worthy to test the effect of MBCT for conditions such as attention deficit disorders.
Source:
Greenberg, J., Datta T., Shapero B.G., Sevinc G., Mischoulon D., Lazar S.W. (2018). Compassionate Hearts Protect Against Wandering Minds: Self-Compassion Moderates the Effect of Mind-Wandering on Depression. Spirituality in Clinical Practice,5(3), doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/scp0000168
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