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Facing social fears: How do improved participants experience change in mindfulness‐based stress reduction for social anxiety disorder?
Author(s) -
Hjeltnes Aslak,
Moltu Christian,
Schanche Elisabeth,
Jansen Ylva,
Binder PerEinar
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
counselling and psychotherapy research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.38
H-Index - 32
eISSN - 1746-1405
pISSN - 1473-3145
DOI - 10.1002/capr.12200
Subject(s) - mindfulness , psychology , thematic analysis , psychological intervention , social anxiety , clinical psychology , anxiety , mindfulness based stress reduction , psychotherapist , stress reduction , feeling , intervention (counseling) , social support , interpretative phenomenological analysis , qualitative research , social psychology , psychiatry , social science , sociology
Background Clinical trials indicate that mindfulness‐based stress reduction ( MBSR ) may be effective for social anxiety disorder ( SAD ), but little is known about how young adults with SAD experience this intervention. Aim The purpose of this study was to explore how improved participants experience the process of change in MBSR for SAD . Method We used a two‐staged mixed methods design to identify participants with reliable and clinically significant improvement on primary outcome measures after an eight‐week MBSR programme ( n = 11), and analyse qualitative interviews to explore how they experienced their own process of change. The interviews were analysed using a hermeneutic‐phenomenological thematic analysis. Results Thematic analysis revealed five main themes: (1) Using awareness of the body to sense that you are actually here right now, (2) Establishing a space that enables you to see negative thoughts for what they are, (3) Allowing fear and shyness through sustained awareness of physical sensations, (4) Transforming an experience of being inferior with kindness and self‐acceptance, and (5) Discovering new ways of engaging with other people. Conclusions Participants described increased awareness and acceptance of sensations, thoughts and feelings, as well as greater self‐acceptance and improved interpersonal relationships during the MBSR programme. Future studies are needed to understand how and why individuals change in mindfulness‐based interventions for SAD .