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Mindfulness and acceptance-based interventions with Black Americans: A meta-analysis of intervention efficacy for depressive symptoms.

Journal of consulting and clinical psychology
February 1, 2022
Danyelle N Dawson et al. (4 authors)
Journal ArticleMeta-AnalysisHuman Study
Study Details

Study Goal

The researchers aimed to evaluate the efficacy of mindfulness and acceptance-based interventions (MABIs) for depression symptoms in Black Americans.

Results Summary

The meta-analysis found a moderate effect of MABIs on depression symptoms (g = 0.48), with similar effects across majority and predominantly Black participant subsets. Effects were influenced by sample and intervention characteristics, showing stronger support for adult samples than youth.

Population

Black Americans (70% average proportion across studies).

Effective Dosage

Not specified

Duration

Not specified

Interactions

None mentioned

Extracted Claims (6)
InterventionDirectionEndpointPopulationDosageImpactClaim #
mindfulness and acceptance-based interventions (MABIs)
decrease
depression symptoms
Black Americans
g = 0.48
a moderate effect
#1
mindfulness and acceptance-based interventions (MABIs)
decrease
symptom outcomes
study subsets comprising majority (>50%) Black participants
g = 0.39
similar effect sizes
#2
mindfulness and acceptance-based interventions (MABIs)
decrease
symptom outcomes
predominantly (>90%) Black participants
g = 0.35
similar effect sizes
#3
mindfulness and acceptance-based interventions (MABIs)
neutral
-
Black Americans
-
efficacious to varying degrees
#4
mindfulness and acceptance-based interventions (MABIs)
neutral
-
adult samples
-
stronger support for use
#5
mindfulness and acceptance-based interventions (MABIs)
neutral
-
youth samples
-
less support for use
#6
Abstract

OBJECTIVE: A growing literature supports mindfulness and acceptance-based interventions (MABIs) for depression prevention and treatment with individuals from dominant cultural groups, and MABIs have been theorized to be well suited to resonate with individuals from nondominant groups. The aim of the current meta-analysis was to determine whether this promise is realized in practice by evaluating the efficacy of MABIs for depression symptoms in Black Americans. METHOD: Thirty studies with an adequate proportion (>20%) of Black Americans were identified using previous reviews and electronic databases, yielding a total of 1,703 participants with an average proportion of 70% Black Americans. Data on moderators (i.e., geographic location, study design, and intervention protocol) and outcomes were extracted and analyzed using metaregression. RESULTS: Results indicated a moderate effect of MABIs on symptom outcomes in the full sample g = 0.48. Effect sizes were similar in study subsets comprising majority (>50%; k = 19) g = 0.39, and predominantly (>90%; k = 10) g = 0.35, Black participants, with no significant moderating effect of racial composition. Effects were moderated by both sample and intervention level characteristics. CONCLUSIONS: The current findings support the conclusion that MABIs are efficacious to varying degrees for Black Americans; with stronger support for use in adult samples than youth samples. These results are promising, and further support efforts to expand research on evidence-based treatments (EBTs) to meet the specific mental health needs of Black Americans. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)
Black or African AmericanDepressionHumansMindfulness
Study Links
Quality Scores
SafetyNot Assessed
Efficacy75/10
Quality80/10
Citation Metrics
Total Citations10
Citations/Year3.3
Relative Citation Ratio2.00
NIH Percentile74.6%
Research Impact Scores
APT Score0.50
Weight Score2.64
Normalized Score0.66
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Mindfulness and acceptance-based interventions with Black Am... | Panacea Index