Abstract
This study investigated the relationship among parent and peer attachments, dispositional mindfulness, and psychological distress, and tested the mediating role of dispositional mindfulness between attachments and psychological distress. A sample of 938 Chinese secondary school students participated in the study. Results showed that: (a) both attachments and dispositional mindfulness were negatively associated with psychological distress; (b) dispositional mindfulness could partially mediate the relations between attachments and psychological distress; (c) the mediation effect from parent attachment through mindfulness to psychological distress was stronger than that from peer attachment. The results suggest that attachment, especially parent attachment, is helpful in enhancing students’ dispositional mindfulness, which in turn reduces psychological distress in secondary school students. Some implications about how to enhance attachment and reduce psychological distress through mindfulness were discussed.
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The first author participated the study design, collected the data, performed the statistical analysis, and drafted the manuscript; the second author led the study design and helped to analyze the data, and draft the manuscript; the third author helped to draft the manuscript; and the fourth author participated in the interpretation of the data. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
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Key Practitioner Message
• Attachments were positively associated with dispositional mindfulness,
• Attachments were negatively associated with psychological distress.
• Attachments have both a direct and indirect influence (through mindfulness) in reducing psychological distress in secondary school students.
• Greater role of parent attachment, than peer attachment, in reducing psychological distress through mindfulness
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Chen, X., He, J., Fan, X. et al. Attachments, dispositional mindfulness, and psychological distress: A mediation analysis. Curr Psychol 40, 1651–1659 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-018-0088-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-018-0088-0