Psychosocial outcomes of the mindfulness-acceptance-commitment approach in collegiate student-athletes

Abstract

The Mindfulness-Acceptance-Commitment (MAC) intervention produces reliable improvement in athletic performance, but little is known about the effectiveness of the intervention in improving psychosocial factors outside of sport. The three studies that have tested this question have methodological problems and produced unexpected results. Utilizinga single-case multiple baseline design, the present study tested the effect of the MAC intervention on four psychosocial outcomes of interest: depression, generalized anxiety, social anxiety, and academic distress, Four collegiate football players completed the seven MAC sessions and completed measures of psychosocial outcomes. The intervention produced psychosocial improvements in some but not all participants. Implications for future research and application are discussed.