Responding mindfully to unpleasant thoughts and images: reliability and validity of the Southampton mindfulness questionnaire (SMQ).
OBJECTIVE
To assess the reliability and validity of the Southampton mindfulness questionnaire (SMQ), a 16-item measure of mindful awareness of distressing thoughts and images.


METHODS
A total of 256 people participated, comprising a non-clinical community sample of 134 (83 meditators and 51 non-meditators) and a clinical sample of 122 people with a current distressing psychosis. To assess concurrent validity, non-clinical participants and half clinical participants (total 197 participants) completed the mindful attention awareness scale (MAAS). Predicted links were assessed with affect, and 59 patients completed a validated measure to assess link between mindfulness and intensity of 'delusional' experience.


RESULTS
The scale has a single factor structure, was internally reliable, significantly correlated with the MAAS, showed expected associations with affect, and distinguished among meditators, non-meditators and people with psychosis.


CONCLUSIONS
The data support use of the SMQ in clinical practice and research to assess mindful responding to distressing thoughts and images.
Department of Psychiatry, Royal South Hants Hospital, Southampton, UK. paul.chadwick@hantspt-sw.nhs.uk
Paul
P
Chadwick
Martin
M
Hember
Janette
J
Symes
Emmanuelle
E
Peters
Elizabeth
E
Kuipers
Dave
D
Dagnan
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001288:Attention; D001364:Awareness; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D003702:Delusions / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology; D005163:Factor Analysis, Statistical; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010555:Personality Inventory / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011594:Psychometrics; D011618:Psychotic Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires