Open Access

ARTICLE

Mindfulness Facets and Psychological Well-Being among Meditators: Serenity as a Mediating Process

Rebecca Y. M. Cheung^1,*, Iris Yili Wang², Elsa Ngar-Sze Lau³

1 School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, UK
2 Department of Special Education and Counselling, The Education University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
3 Department of Educational Administration and Policy, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China

* Corresponding Author: Rebecca Y. M. Cheung. Email:

International Journal of Mental Health Promotion 2024, 26(3), 177-187. https://doi.org/10.32604/ijmhp.2024.047190

Received 28 October 2023; Accepted 19 January 2024; Issue published 08 April 2024

Abstract

Guided by the theoretical processes of mindfulness and psychological well-being, this study examined serenity as a mediator between mindfulness facets and psychological well-being, as indexed by depressive symptoms and life satisfaction. Participants were 133 mindfulness practitioners who took part in a 3-day transnational meditation event in Hong Kong. Upon informed consent, participants completed a self-report questionnaire. The findings from structural equation modeling showed that serenity mediated the relation between two facets of mindfulness, including describing and nonreacting to inner experience, and life satisfaction. Serenity also mediated the relation between the mindfulness facet of describing and depressive symptoms. Direct associations were indicated between two mindfulness facets, including observing and nonjudging of inner experience, and depressive symptoms. Taken together, the findings revealed mindfulness facets as major correlates of serenity and psychological outcomes among Chinese meditation practitioners. To foster psychological well-being, researchers, educators, and practitioners should pay attention to the role of serenity, describing, and nonreacting to inner experience in mental health.

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Keywords

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