Abstract
Mindfulness-based therapies are rising in popularity. However, evidence for their effectiveness in reducing psychological distress and enhancing wellbeing for families living with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is limited. A systematic search identified 10 independent studies, involving a pooled sample of 233 children and adults with ASD and 241 caregivers. Hedges’ g effect sizes with associated 95% confidence intervals, in addition to heterogeneity, were calculated using a random-effects model. Caregivers, children and adults who received mindfulness all reported significant gains in subjective wellbeing immediately post-intervention. Available data indicated intervention effects were maintained at 3-month follow-up. Mindfulness presents a promising intervention strategy in ASD populations, however more controlled research is required to determine its precise efficacy for affected families and subgroups.
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Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank Maureen Bell, Research Librarian at the University of Adelaide, in addition to Susan Staub and Belinda Fuss for assistance with the database searching, inter-rater reliability calculations and manuscript suggestions respectively. Thanks also to Henk Van Rhee, Erasmus University, for guidance and technical assistance on Meta-essentials. We also thank the authors of included studies who kindly responded to our requests for additional data.
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This work was supported by an Australian Government Research Training Program Scholarship.
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MH was responsible for study design, data collection, analysis and interpretation and manuscript drafts; DD contributed to study design and assisted with data interpretation, manuscript draft and revisions; CD contributed to the study design and critically reviewed manuscript drafts. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
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Hartley, M., Dorstyn, D. & Due, C. Mindfulness for Children and Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder and Their Caregivers: A Meta-analysis. J Autism Dev Disord 49, 4306–4319 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-019-04145-3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-019-04145-3