Trait Mindfulness Helps Shield Decision-Making From Translating Into Health-Risk Behavior
Document Type
Article
Department
Community and Global Health (CGU)
Publication Date
12-2012
Disciplines
Cognition and Perception | Health Psychology | Mental and Social Health | Substance Abuse and Addiction
Abstract
Purpose
The cognitive tendency toward mindfulness may influence the enactment of health and risk behaviors by its bringing increased attention to and awareness of decision-making processes underlying behavior. The present study examined the moderating effect of trait mindfulness on associations between intentions to smoke (ITS)/smoking refusal self-efficacy (SRSE) and smoking frequency.
Methods
Self-reports from Chinese adolescents (N = 5,287; mean age = 16.2 years, standard deviation = .7; 48.8% female) were collected in 24 schools. Smoking frequency was regressed on latent factor interactions Mindful Attention Awareness Scale*ITS and Mindful Attention Awareness Scale*SRSE, adjusting for school clustering effects and covariates.
Results
Both interaction terms were significant in cross-sectional analyses and showed that high ITS predicted higher smoking frequency among those low, relative to high, in trait mindfulness, whereas low SRSE predicted higher smoking frequency among those low, relative to high, in trait mindfulness.
Conclusions
Findings suggest trait mindfulness possibly shields against decision-making processes that place adolescents at risk for smoking.
Rights Information
© 2012 Society for Adolescent Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc.
DOI
10.1016/j.jadohealth.2012.03.011
Recommended Citation
Black, D.S., Sussman, S., Johnson, C.A., & Milam, J. Trait mindfulness helps shield decision-making from translating into health-risk behavior. J Adolesc Health, 51(6): 588–592. 2012.
