| Few studies have examined the effect of mindfulness-based interventions for problematic substance use. The current study investigates effects of a brief mindfulness-based instruction set, based on Marlatt's "urge surfing" technique (Marlatt & Gordon, 1985), on negative affect, urges and smoking. Results suggest that undergraduate smokers randomly assigned to receive brief mindfulness-based instructions, when compared to those in a control group, did not differ significantly on measures of urges or negative affect. However, the relation between urges and negative affect was stronger for subjects in the control group, and those in the mindfulness group smoked fewer cigarettes over a seven-day follow-up period. Results suggest that the impact of mindfulness techniques might not necessarily be due to reduced urges or negative affect, but rather changing the relation between urges, affect and smoking. This change could conceivably help decrease use of cigarettes as a means to ameliorate urges or affective discomfort. The study provides preliminary data for future studies examining both mechanisms and effectiveness of mindfulness-based interventions for substance use. |
