Mindfulness-based therapy: A comprehensive meta-analysis

•We conducted a meta-analysis to provide a review of mindfulness-based therapy.•It includes 209 studies enrolling 12,145 participants with a variety of disorders.•We obtained Hedge's g = .53 in waitlist controlled studies, .55 in pre-post studies.•When compared with other treatments, we obtained a smaller effect (Hedge's g = .33).•The results obtained are robust and are maintained at follow-up.

BackgroundMindfulness-based therapy (MBT) has become a popular form of intervention. However, the existing reviews report inconsistent findings.ObjectiveTo clarify these inconsistencies in the literature, we conducted a comprehensive effect-size analysis to evaluate the efficacy of MBT.Data sourcesA systematic review of studies published in journals or in dissertations in PubMED or PsycINFO from the first available date until May 10, 2013.Review methodsA total of 209 studies (n = 12,145) were included.ResultsEffect-size estimates suggested that MBT is moderately effective in pre-post comparisons (n = 72; Hedge's g = .55), in comparisons with waitlist controls (n = 67; Hedge's g = .53), and when compared with other active treatments (n = 68; Hedge's g = .33), including other psychological treatments (n = 35; Hedge's g = .22). MBT did not differ from traditional CBT or behavioral therapies (n = 9; Hedge's g = − .07) or pharmacological treatments (n = 3; Hedge's g = .13).ConclusionMBT is an effective treatment for a variety of psychological problems, and is especially effective for reducing anxiety, depression, and stress.