“Be here now” – service users’ experiences of a mindfulness group intervention
| Date | 05 March 2018 |
| Pages | 77-87 |
| Published date | 05 March 2018 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/AMHID-10-2017-0035 |
| Author | Aiveen Dillon,Charlotte Wilson,Catherine Jackman |
| Subject Matter | Health & social care,Learning & intellectual disabilities |
“Be here now”–service users’
experiences of a mindfulness
group intervention
Aiveen Dillon, Charlotte Wilson and Catherine Jackman
Abstract
Purpose –The purpose of this paper is to explore service users’experiences of a mindfulness group
intervention.
Design/methodology/approach –In total, 15 participants with a diagnosis of a mild or moderate
intellectual disability and concurrent mental health difficulties were interviewed using semi-structured
interviews about their experiences of attending the mindfulness group.
Findings –Thematic analysis was used to interpret the data. The three super ordinate themes that emerged
were positive aspects of mindfulness, positive aspects of attending the group and negative aspects of
attending the group. There were seven subthemes. The results highlighted that participants found the
mindfulness group to be beneficial, partly due to specific aspects of the mindfulness intervention and partly
due to the group process. The negative aspects of the group were harder to elicit, and were less specifically
related to mindfulness.
Originality/value –Mindfulness-based interventions have emerged as a promising approach for individuals
with intellectual disabilities with mental health difficulties. There is currently a lack of research exploring service
users with intellectual disabilities about their experiences of mindfulness interventions.
Keywords Mental health, Intellectual disabilities, Mindfulness, Groups, Thematic analysis, Qualitative
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
Individuals with intellectual disabilities have been found to have a greater level of physical
and mental health problems than individuals without disabilities (Idusohan-Moizer et al., 2015);
the prevalence of mental illness in individuals with an intellectual disability is estimated to be
30 to 50 per cent (Smiley, 2005). With mental health difficulties being common in individuals with
an intellectual disability, there is an obvious need to identify effective treatments. There is some
evidence for the effectiveness of cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) in treating a range of mental
health difficulties in this population (Lindsay et al., 2015; Unwin et al., 2016). There is also
evidence for the effectiveness of psychodynamic and psychoanalytic approaches (Willner, 2005).
More recently, mindfulness-based interventions have emerged as a promising approach for
individuals with intellectual disabilities.
Mindfulness has beendefined as “paying attention in a particularway; on purpose, in the present
moment, and non judgmentally”(Kabat-Zinn, 1990). Mindfulness has been theoretically and
empirically associated with psychological well-being and has increasingly been used in health
services for thetreatment of mental health difficulties(Keng et al., 2011). Specific approacheshave
been developed such as mindfulness-based stress reduction (Kabat-Zinn, 1990), while
mindfulness has also been seen as a successful adjunct to CBT in the treatment of mental
health difficulties. Mindfulness-basedcognitive therapy (Segal et al., 2013) integrates mindfulness
meditation with cognitive interventions. The aim of MBCT is to reduce relapse in individuals with
Received 15 October 2017
Revised 29 January 2018
7 February 2018
Accepted 9 February 2018
Aiveen Dillon is based at the
School of Psychology,
University of Dublin Trinity
College, Dublin, Ireland.
Charlotte Wilson is an Assistant
Professor in Clinical
Psychology at the School of
Psychology, University of
Dublin Trinity College,
Dublin, Ireland.
Catherine Jackman is based at
the Cheeverstown House Ltd,
Dublin, Ireland.
DOI 10.1108/AMHID-10-2017-0035 VOL. 12 NO. 2 2018, pp.77-87, © Emerald Publishing Limited, ISSN 2044-1282
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ADVANCESIN MENTAL HEALTH AND INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES
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