Frontiers in Psychology Research Topic: Mindfulness and Mental Health in the Time of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Our team:

• Associate Professor Wendy Li
• Dr Dan J. Miller
• Prof Annalakshmi Narayanan (Bharathiar University, Coimbatore, India)
• Prof Shauna Shapiro (Santa Clara University, Santa Clara, the United States)

COVID-19 and the associated public health measures, such as quarantine lockdown, the cessation of lockdown, re-lockdown, media coverage of the spread of the virus, have the potential to contribute to psychological fear and anxiety on a global scale. As of 24 September 2021, there have been 230,418,451 confirmed cases of COVID-19 globally, including 4,724,876 deaths, reported to WHO. To overcome the adversity and stress associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, many are able to effectively engage mental resources, such as mindfulness. In this way, mindfulness may act as a buffer against COVID-19 related distress.

The pandemic has impacted the world in unprecedented ways. This research topic aims to explore the impact of mindfulness on the maintenance (and even potential improvement) of psychological well-being and mental health in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. Mindfulness can provide the cognitive flexibility to actively construct current experiences with curious, open-minded, non-judging, non-striving, and acceptant attitudes. High levels of mindfulness enable greater sensitivity to one’s situation and more openness to new information, thus potentially promoting the evaluation and reorganization of one’s mental resources and capacities to adapt to the evolving demands brought about by the pandemic. Increases in cognitive flexibility, improvements in resilience, the re-establishment of certainty, and the reconstruction of a sense of belonging may bolster emotional regulation and distress tolerance, leading to enhancements in mental health.

In this research topic, we welcome quantitative, qualitative, and mixed-methods studies, and systematic reviews that address, but are not limited to, the following topics in relation to mindfulness and mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic:

• the relationship between mindfulness and mental health;
• the underlying mechanism/factors that influence the relationship between mindfulness and mental health; and
• the effectiveness of mindfulness-based intervention for the improvement of mental health.

We welcome submissions targeting different population and cultural groups and different organizational and social settings. For details of the Research Topic, please visit: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/24428/mindfulness-and-mental-health-in-the-time-of-the-covid-19-pandemic