What Is Measured by Self-report Measures of Mindfulness?: Conceptual and Measurement Issues

Abstract

Over the past decades, there has been growing research interest in mindfulness. This chapter aims to address the four issues with regard to the measurement of mindfulness. First, it will review various conceptualizations and facets of mindfulness that have been proposed in the literature. In particular, this review will introduce how mindfulness has been conceptualized in traditional Buddhist texts and will examine secular conceptualizations proposed by contemporary Western scholars. Second, the chapter will review eleven self-report instruments of mindfulness available in the literature and will present how the identified facets of mindfulness map onto these instruments. Previous research found that the correlations between mindfulness measures vary widely from weak to strong, indicating their lack of concurrent validity. Since no established referent of mindfulness exists yet, the review will focus on linking key mindfulness facets identified in theoretical sources with mindfulness components specified in the instruments. Third, the chapter will evaluate the psychometric properties and provide general guidelines for the use of these mindfulness measures. Finally, the chapter will address three important issues regarding the assessment of mindfulness: measurement utility of mindfulness questionnaires, types of mindfulness, and implications for future research.