Title:
Suffering, faith, and meaning making in older adulthood?
Author:
Rennae Wigton
Thesis Advisor:
Jill Snodgrass
Committee Member:
Andrew Futterman
Committee Member:
Nicole Reibe
Committee Member:
Rebekah Eklund
Committee Member:
Stephen Fowl
Degree Granting Institution:
Loyola University Maryland--College of Arts and Sciences
Place:
Baltimore (Md.)
Publisher:
Loyola University Maryland
Date Created:
2001
Type of Resource:
text
Genre:
thesis
Language:
eng
Format:
application/pdf
Physical Form:
electronic
Digital Source:
born digital
Abstract:
The purpose of this research study was to determine whether mindfulness is a feasible and effective intervention for individuals with substance use disorders. Participants included forty-three adults with substance use disorders who were recruited from a Baltimore city recovery center. The participants were not actively using substances at the time of the intervention, making relapse prevention the focus of the study. Community partners for this intervention were the recovery center—who provided participants and a space for the intervention—and Holistic Life Foundation, an organization with trained mindfulness instructors who led the intervention. Participants were initially divided into two groups—intervention and treatment as usual. By the second week of the intervention, low participation in the intervention group resulted in consolidation of the groups, which allowed all consented participants to attend the mindfulness group. The intervention involved an hour-long, yoga-based mindfulness meditation group once a week for a period of twelve weeks. Additionally, all individuals were given several questionnaires to complete four times throughout the intervention process (before beginning, and then once every four weeks). The questionnaires assessed the constructs of substance cravings, mindfulness, distress tolerance, anxiety, depression, and overall satisfaction with the intervention. Results showed statistically significant improvements in participants’ levels of mindfulness, anxiety, and depression when comparing pre- and post-treatment data. There was no significant change in participants’ cravings or levels of distress tolerance from Week 1 to Week 12. This research highlighted a significant change in experiences of anxiety and depression, which are common triggers to substance use and which were reduced from pre- to post-mindfulness.
Subject:
Older People--Psychology
Subject:
Older people--Psychology
Subject:
Electronic dissertations
Subject:
Academic theses
Degree:
Master of Theological Studies
Level:
Master
Discipline:
Theology
Restrictions on Access:
Author has given permission to make this work available online
Use and Reproduction:
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Identifier:
WigtonRA-21
