Trait Mindfulness: A Multifaceted Evaluation

Abstract

Scant studies have addressed the relations of an array of variables related to trait mindfulness in the context of a single investigation. We tested 800 (67.9% females, 31.3% males, .6% other, and .3% missing) undergraduate participants to evaluate three hypotheses: (a) increased positive affect, extraversion, openness, agreeableness, conscientiousness, acceptance, mysticism, transliminality, emotion regulation, and resilience would be related to increased trait mindfulness; (b) decreased negative affect, neuroticism, trait anxiety, behavioral avoidance, depression, and psychopathy would be associated with increased trait mindfulness; and (c) emotion regulation and resilience would demonstrate the strongest relations with trait mindfulness. All variables correlated significantly with trait mindfulness in the hypothesized directions, except for mysticism. Regression analyses revealed that emotion regulation, resilience, neuroticism, openness, conscientiousness, and behavioral avoidance all uniquely related to trait mindfulness. Enhanced emotion regulation and resilience alone accounted for more than 50% of variance in trait mindfulness.