| Mindfulness-based interventions have recently received support for their utility with parents under stress. Mindfulness, which is often described as having an accepting, nonjudgmental, calm mind that is focused on the present moment, allows parents to become more aware of their preconceived thoughts and automatic reactions, while at the same time changing their relationship with stress. No controlled studies utilizing mindfulness meditation with parents of children with externalizing behavior problems have been conducted to date. The goal of this study is to contribute to the growing empirical research on the effectiveness of mindfulness as a clinical intervention for stressed parents with challenging children, while adding to the existing psychosocial parent training literature.;The current study utilized a multiple baseline across subjects design to examine the effectiveness of a 6-week Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR; Kabat-Zinn, 1990) program for parents of children with externalizing behavior problems. Participants included 10 mothers who scored at least one standard deviation above the mean on the Parenting Stress Index-Short Form, and whose child received a clinically significant T score on the Eyberg Child Behavior Inventory. Dependent measures, including the Parenting Stress Index – Short Form, Eyberg Child Behavior Inventory, Parenting Daily Hassle Scale, Interpersonal Mindfulness in Parenting Scale, and the Kentucky Inventory of Mindfulness Skills were administered during the baseline phase, during treatment sessions, and at a 2 and 4 week follow-up. In addition, both child and parent behavior during a demanding task was video-taped and coded prior to and following treatment. It was hypothesized that compared to baseline, parents would report reduced stress, reduced intensity of parenting hassles, increased mindful parenting, increase in mindfulness skills, and improved child behavior following treatment, and that changes would be maintained at follow-up. It was also hypothesized that both parent and child would demonstrate a reduction in negative behaviors during the stressful task following treatment.;Treatment results were examined by visual inspection and statistical analysis. Although visual inspection suggested that the majority of participants demonstrated changes in the predicted direction on the majority of dependent measures from baseline to the end of treatment, hypotheses were, for the most part, not supported by statistical analysis. Out of the ten participants, only two demonstrated a statistically significant reduction in parenting stress, four demonstrated statistically significant reductions in child problem behavior, three showed statistically significant decreases in parenting daily hassles, three displayed statistically significant increases in mindfulness skills, and only one participant demonstrated a statistically significant increase in mindful parenting. All participants anecdotally reported that they benefited from participation. Results were discussed in terms of theoretical and practical implications. Strengths and limitations of the study, as well as suggestions for future research were also presented. |
