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Mindfulness- and acceptance-based strategies effectively alter clients' relationships with their internal experiences, which may have been previously restricted, avoided, or even beyond clients' awareness. Even though the scientific exploration of the psychological benefits of mindfulness in the treatment literature continues to be in its infancy, it is important to uphold best practices by exploring the applications of these therapeutic approaches in diverse community populations. In this article, we discuss recommendations for addressing challenges that have arisen while delivering mindfulness- and acceptance-based behavioral therapies to consumers of mental health services from underserved and underrepresented backgrounds (e.g., marginalized racial, religious, and socioeconomic groups). Specific case examples illustrate the challenges of promoting acceptance in the face of adversity, the acceptability of mindfulness, attending to differences in the therapist and client perspectives, and promoting the pursuit of values in the face of adversity. Clinical recommendations and suggestions for dissemination of these approaches to clinicians working with racially and ethnically diverse, underserved populations are discussed.
The current study explores the potential buffering effect of trait mindfulness on the impact of racism on anxiety symptomology in an African-American sample. Fifty-seven participants completed a questionnaire packet containing measures of anxious arousal and stress (general anxiety) symptoms, trait mindfulness, and experience of racist events. Results indicated that trait mindfulness moderated the relationship between past-year frequency of racist events and anxious arousal. Specifically, the relationship between past-year frequency of racist events and anxious arousal was significantly positive at low levels of trait mindfulness and not significant at high levels of trait mindfulness. The clinical implications of these findings and future research directions are discussed.