Trait mindfulness and psychological distress in college students: indirect associations via experiential avoidance.

OBJECTIVE

This cross-sectional study examined whether the associations between trait mindfulness and psychological distress were consistent with indirect associations involving experiential avoidance (EA) among college students.

PARTICIPANTS

The sample consisted of 289 undergraduate students (Mage = 18.7; 77% female).

METHODS

Participants completed the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire, Acceptance and Action Questionnaire-II, Multidimensional Experiential Avoidance Questionnaire, and Depression Anxiety Stress Scales-21. Indirect effect models were estimated with bootstrapped confidence intervals.

RESULTS

Higher trait mindfulness was associated with lower EA, and higher EA was associated with greater depression, anxiety, and stress. Bootstrapped 95% confidence intervals for indirect effect estimates did not include zero across outcomes and EA measures, and direct associations between mindfulness and distress remained.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings are consistent with psychological flexibility theory and suggest that EA is a relevant correlate of mindfulness-distress associations in college students. Longitudinal and experimental studies are needed to test temporal precedence and causal mechanisms.