Abstract

VANDENBERGHE, Luc  and  SOUSA, Ana Carolina Aquino de. Mindfulness in cognitive and behavioral therapies. Rev. bras.ter. cogn. [online]. 2006, vol.2, n.1, pp. 35-44. ISSN 1808-5687.

This article approaches a concept that originated in Oriental meditative practices, and became part of behavioral medicine starting with the stress reduction program of Kabat-Zinn. Mindfulness is defined as a specific mode of paying full attention - concentrated on the present moment, intentionally and non-judgmentally. It means being in contact with the present and not being involved in memories or in thoughts about the future. Although implicitly present in clinical practices of traditional behavioral and cognitive therapy, it only gained full visibility in the literature during the past decade. Mindfulness is presented in this article in the way it is practiced in different contemporary behavioral and cognitive therapies. The therapeutic possibilities that this concept opens up from different theoretical perspectives are discussed.

Keywords : Meditation; Cognitive-behavior therapy; Acceptance.