Date of Conferral

2019

Degree

Ph.D.

School

Psychology

Advisor

Anne Morris

Abstract

This study aimed to assess the impact of an Mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) intervention in a program serving women who survived Intimate partner violence (IPV). The biopsychosocial model, formulated by Engel, was the theoretical basis of this study. The impact of the MBSR intervention was assessed by qualitatively evaluating researcher notes and 5 participants' journals and reflections, and quantitatively evaluating 16 participants' self-reported stress, mindfulness, well-being, and optimism before and after the intervention. The themes that emerged from the qualitative data included participants' feelings of relaxation or balance, improved self-awareness, mindfulness exercises becoming easier over time, and improved intentionality. The Kentucky Inventory of Mindfulness Skills (KIMS) self-report inventory was used to assess participants' mindfulness. The KIMS instrument is composed of four subscales: observe, describe, act, and accept. There were significant improvements in the describe and accept dimensions of mindfulness from pretest to posttest, after Bonferroni adjustment. The subscale describe measures how well the participants report being able to describe, identify, or observe mental phenomena in a nonjudgmental manner. There were no significant differences from pre to posttest on stress, well-being, and optimism, a non-equivalent dependent variable not expected to change as a result of the intervention, as optimism is presumed to be a stable personality trait. This study may provide a valuable link to the development of coping and treatment strategies for IPV survivors that can be integrated into therapy programs and individual treatment.

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