Mindful Mates: A Pilot Study of the Relational Effects of Mindfulness‐Based Stress Reduction on Participants and Their Partners

• Author: Elizabeth B. Strand,Kristina Coop Gordon,Alexander Khaddouma
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/famp.12226
• Date: 01 September 2017
• Published date: 01 September 2017

Mindful Mates: A Pilot Study of the Relational Effects

of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction on

Participants and Their Partners

ALEXANDER KHADDOUMA*

KRISTINA COOP GORDON*

ELIZABETH B. STRAND

†

Very little is currently known about how increases in dispositional mindfulness through

mindfulness training affect the quality of participants’ romantic relationshi ps, and no pre-

vious studies have examined how increases in specific facets of mindfulness differentiall y

contribute to relationship health. Additionally, even less is known about how an individ-

ual’s development of mindfulness skills affects the relationship satisfaction of his or her

romantic partner. Thus, the purpose of this pilot study was to examine asso ciations

between changes in facets of mindfulness and relationship satisfaction among participants

enrolled in a Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) course and their nonenrolled

romantic partners. Twenty MBSR participants and their nonenrolled partners (n=40)

completed measures of mindfulness and relationship satisfaction pre- and post-enrolled

partners’ completion of an MBSR course. Results indicated that enrolled parti cipants sig-

nificantly improved on all facets of mindfulness and relationship satisfaction, while

nonenrolled partners did not significantly increase on any facet of mindfulness or rela tion-

ship satisfaction. Moreover, enrolled participants’ increases in Acting with Awareness

were positively associated with increases in their own and their nonenrolled partners’ rela-

tionship satisfaction, whereas increases in enrolled participants’ Nonreactivity were posi-

tively associated with increases in their nonenrolled partners’ (but not their own)

relationship satisfaction. These results suggest that increasing levels of mindfulness (par-

ticularly specific aspects of mindfulness) may have positive effects on couples’ relationship

satisfaction and highlight mindfulness training as a promising tool for education and

intervention efforts aimed at promoting relational health.

Keywords: Mindf ulness; Relationship Satisfaction; Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction

Fam Proc 56:636–651, 2017

Mindfulness is a concept originating in Buddhist spiritual systems and presently

defined by Western researchers as the ability of the individual to purposefully bring

his or her attention and awareness to the experiences of the present moment and relate to

them in a nonreflexive and nonjudgmental way (Bishop et al., 2004; Chiesa, 2013; Kabat-

Zinn, 1994). Moreover, research has shown that mindfulness is a multifaceted construct

that consists of five distinct but related underlying subcomponents or “facets” (Baer,

Smith, Hopkins, Krietemeyer, & Toney, 2006). Observing of Experience reflects the

*Department of Psychology, University of Tennessee –Knoxville, Knoxville, TN.

†

College of Veterinary Medicine, College of Social Work, University of Tennessee –Knoxville, Knoxville, TN.

Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Alexander Khaddouma, Department of

Psychology, University of Tennessee –Knoxville, Austin Peay Building, 1404 Circle Drive, Knoxville, TN

37996. E-mail: akhaddou@vols.utk.edu.

636

Family Process, Vol. 56, No. 3, 2017 ©2016 Family Process Institute

doi: 10.1111/famp.12226

tendency of the individual to notice or attend to internal and external experiences, such as

sensations, cognitions, emotions, sights, sounds, and smells. Similarly, Describing with

Words refers to the tendency to note or label experiences with words. Acting with Aware-

ness reflects one’s tendency to attend to activities of the moment with purposeful atten-

tion, rather than behaving automatically or absentmindedly. Nonjudging of Inner

Experience refers to the tendency of the individual to take a nonevaluative stance toward

sensations, cognitions, and emotions. Lastly, Nonreactivity to Inner Experience refers to

one’s tendency to allow thoughts and feelings to come and go without getting caught up in

or carried away by them. This multifaceted nature of mindfulness has led to increased

interest in how individual facets might differentially contribute to favorable mental and

physical health outcomes (Leary & Tate, 2007). A growing body of research has linked

mindfulness with a number of favorable psychological (Davis & Hayes, 2011; Eberth &

Sedlmeier, 2012; Keng, Smoski, & Robins, 2011) and physical (Grossman, Niemann, Sch-

midt, & Walach, 2004) health outcomes. Additionally, previous research suggests that

mindfulness might also be linked with positive relational outcomes, such as higher levels

of relationship satisfaction (Atkinson, 2013; Kozlowski, 2013) and with more skillful

responses to relationship stress, increased empathy, greater acceptance of one’s partner,

greater interpersonal differentiation, and more secure spousal attachment (Barnes,

Brown, Krusemark, Campbell, & Rogge, 2007; Burpee & Langer, 2005; Jones, Welton,

Oliver, & Thoburn, 2011; Khaddouma, Gordon, & Bolden, 2015; Wachs & Cordova, 2007).

Consequently, efforts to increase individuals’ levels of trait mindfulness through mind-

fulness skills training have become an important component of several therapeutic inter-

ventions for a wide variety of populations, such as Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy

(MBCT; Segal, Williams, & Teasdale, 2002), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT; Linehan,

1993), and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT; Hayes, Strosahl, & Wilson, 1999).

The most studied form of mindfulness training in the United States is Mindfulness-Based

Stress Reduction (MBSR; Kabat-Zinn, 1990). MBSR is an 8-week structured psychoeduca-

tional group program that teaches mindfulness techniques through a certified instructor.

Participants are taught various types of meditation practices, which they apply in class

and at home to activities of daily living, such as eating, speaking, walking, and interacting

with others. Participants attend single weekly 2.5-hour sessions along with an additional

all-day session and commit to complete daily 45-minute homework assignments primarily

in the form of meditation practice, mindful yoga, and application of mindfulness skills to

daily activities. A number of controlled studies have demonstrated the efficacy of MBSR

for a wide range of clinical populations and medic al conditions (Grossman et al., 2004)

and indicated that increases in overall mindfulness may be primarily resp onsible for the

effectiveness of MBSR in favorable mental and physical health outcomes (Nykl

ı

cek & Kui-

jpers, 2008). Moreover, several studies have demonstrated that MBSR participants report

increases in each individual facet of mindfulness following mindfulness training (Carmody

& Baer, 2009; Carmody, Baer, Lykins, & Olendzki, 2009) and that increases in specific

facets of mindfulness may differentially contribute to favorable individual-level outcomes,

such as lower depressive symptomatology, anxiety, perceived stress, and greater psycho-

logical well-being (Cash & Whittingham, 2010).

However, few studies have examined the effects of mindfulness-based interventions on

relational outcomes, such as romantic relationship quality and stability. In one study, can -

cer patients and their partners who jointly participated in an MBSR program reported sig-

nificant reductions in stress, mood disturbances, and physical symptoms, as well as

increases in overall mindfulness (Birnie, Garland, & Carlson, 2010); however, this study

did not report on relational outcomes (e.g., relationship satisfaction) of couples in the

MBSR course. In fact, only three previous studies have reported on the relational out-

comes of participants who received mindfulness training. In one study, Smith, Jones,

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