Handbook of Mindfulness: Theory, Research, and Practice

An authoritative handbook, this volume offers both a comprehensive review of the current science of mindfulness and a guide to its ongoing evolution. Leading scholars explore mindfulness in the context of contemporary psychological theories of attention, perceptual processing, motivation, and behaviour, as well as within a rich cross-disciplinary dialogue with the contemplative traditions. After surveying basic research from neurobiological, cognitive, emotion/affective, and interpersonal perspectives, the book delves into applications of mindfulness practice in healthy and clinical populations, reviewing a growing evidence base. Examined are interventions for behavioural and emotion dysregulation disorders, depression, anxiety, and addictions, and for physical health conditions.

Key features:

• An accessible yet rigourous handbook on mindfulness and its applications.
• Corrals the wide ranging research in the field to offer readers the best that current science has to offer.
• Discusses applications of mindfulness in both healthy and clinical populations.
• Editors and contributors are leading scholars.

This book will be helpful for clinical psychologists; clinical social workers; family therapists; behavioural scientists; psychotherapists, psychoanalysts, psychiatrists, nurses, and other mental health professionals interested in mindfulness.

Table of Contents

1. Introduction: The Evolution of Mindfulness Science, Kirk Warren Brown, J. David Creswell, & Richard M. Ryan

I. Historical and Conceptual Overview of Mindfulness

2. Buddhist Conceptualizations of Mindfulness, Rupert Gethin
3. Developing Attention and Decreasing Affective Bias: Toward a Cross-Cultural Cognitive Science of Mindfulness, Jake H. Davis & Evan Thompson
4. Reconceptualizing Mindfulness: The Psychological Principles of Attending in Mindfulness Practice and Their Role in Well-Being, James Carmody

II. Mindfulness in the Context of Contemporary Psychological Theory

5. Mindfulness in the Context of the Attention System, Yi Yuan Tang & Michael I. Posner
6. Mindfulness in the Context of Processing Mode Theory, Edward R.Watkins
7. Being Aware and Functioning Fully: Mindfulness and Interest-Taking within Self-Determination Theory, Edward L. Deci, Richard M. Ryan, Patricia P. Schultz, & Christopher P. Niemiec
8. Mindfulness in Contextual Cognitive-Behavioral Models, Thomas G. Szabo, Douglas M. Long, Matthieu Villatte & Steven C. Hayes

III. Basic Science of Mindfulness

9. From Conceptualization to Operationalization of Mindfulness, Jordan T. Quaglia, Kirk Warren Brown, Emily K. Lindsay, J. David Creswell, & Robert J. Goodman
10. The Neurobiology of Mindfulness Meditation, Fadel Zeidan
11. Cognitive Benefits of Mindfulness Meditation, Marieke K. van Vugt
12. Emotional Benefits of Mindfulness, Joanna J. Arch & Lauren N. Landy
13. The Science of Presence: A Central Mediator of the Interpersonal Benefits of Mindfulness, Suzanne C. Parker, Benjamin W. Nelson, Elissa S. Epel, Daniel J. Siegel
14. Did the Buddha Have a Self?: No-Self, Self, and Mindfulness in Buddhist Thought and Western Psychologies, Richard M. Ryan & C. Scott Rigby

IV. Mindfulness Interventions for Healthy Populations

15. Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction for Healthy Stressed Adults, Shauna L. Shapiro & Hooria Jazaieri
16. Mindfulness Training for Children and Adolescents: A State-of-the-Science Review, David S. Black
17. Mindfulness Training to Enhance Positive Functioning, Kirk Warren Brown

V. Mindfulness Interventions for Clinical Populations

18. Mindfulness Interventions for Emotional Dysregulation Disorders: From Self-Control to Self-Regulation, Thomas R. Lynch, Sophie A. Lazarus, & Jennifer S. Cheavens
19. Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Chronic Depression, Julie Anne Irving, Norman A. S.Farb, & Zindel V. Segal
20. Mindfulness in the Treatment of Anxiety, Sarah A. Hayes-Skelton & Lauren P. Wadsworth
21. A Mindfulness-Based Approach to Addiction, Sarah Bowen, Cassandra Vieten, Katie Witkiewitz, & Haley Douglas
22. Mindfulness-Based Interventions for Physical Conditions: A Selective Review, Linda E. Carlson
23. Biological Pathways Linking Mindfulness with Health, J. David Creswell

"Although psychologists were 2,500 years late to recognize the benefits of mindfulness, behavioral scientists and practitioners have made immense strides in understanding this important process. Drawing from work across the domains of psychology, this volume examines the psychological processes that underlie mindfulness, comprehensively reviews basic research, and describes mindfulness-based interventions for specific populations. The book makes an exceptional contribution as it summarizes the current state of knowledge, offers ideas for future research, and paves the way toward even more effective interventions."
- Mark R. Leary, PhD, Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Duke University

"Finally, the most comprehensive work on mindfulness! This handbook sums up the current state of the research and clinical applications and offers insightful discussions of multiple aspects of mindfulness. The chapters are written in a clear and interesting fashion by highly respected experts. This is useful reading for advanced students in psychology and cognitive sciences as well as health care professionals, and will be 'unputdownable' for anyone interested in learning more about mindfulness. I wholeheartedly recommend this excellent book."
- Britta Hölzel, PhD, Harvard Medical School/Massachusetts General Hospital and Department of Neuroradiology, Technical University of Munich, Germany

"The mindfulness literature is growing so fast that keeping up can seem impossible. This volume helps tremendously. Ancient Buddhist teachings and their relationship to contemporary Western scientific approaches are thoughtfully discussed. Theoretical viewpoints, measurement issues, and basic research findings on the brain, cognition, and emotion are covered in depth, as are mindfulness-based interventions for healthy individuals and those with mental and physical health problems. This is an outstanding volume from a distinguished group of contributors."
- Ruth A. Baer, PhD, Department of Psychology, University of Kentucky