Issue Editors' Notes

Abstract

For adolescents in today's world, this is perhaps the best of times and the worst of times. It may be the worst of times because despite many efforts, problems among adolescents continue to burgeon. Epidemiological reports, for instance, highlight increased adolescent mental health disturbances, with approximately one in five adolescents experiencing psychological disorders severe enough to warrant mental health services. A review of three longitudinal studies examining prevalence of mental health problems among adolescents revealed that between the ages of nine and sixteen, 37–39 percent of youth have been diagnosed with at least one or more psychiatric disorders.1 Later follow-ups to these longitudinal studies found that the prevalence rate of psychiatric disorders grew to 40–50 percent by age twenty-one.2 The Institute of Medicine's 2009 report on mental, emotional, and behavioral disorders of young people indicated that the “annual quantifiable cost of such disorders among young people was estimated in 2007 to be $247 billion” (p. 1) and emphasized that prevention and the use of empirically supported interventions are essential strategies for reducing mental illness and promoting social and emotional health. It may be equally the best of times for adolescents today because of the abundance of groundbreaking scientific discoveries that are emerging in areas such as neuroscience, positive youth development, and resiliency that can inform the development and implementation of interventions aimed at deterring problems and promoting well-being in adolescence. One such innovation that holds much promise for helping adolescents reach their potential is the focus of this volume: mindfulness approaches with adolescents. The goal of this volume is threefold. First, the chapters aim to establish a theoretical framework within mindfulness-based approaches in adolescence. Second, the volume includes reviews of empirical evidence on the effectiveness of mindfulness-based interventions with adolescents, provides guidance for evaluation, and discusses limitations and future directions for both research and practice. Third, the volume aims to be a practical resource for educators and practitioners who work with adolescents and their families. Specific mindfulness-based programs are introduced, examples of mindfulness activities are provided, and guidelines for bringing mindfulness into the school-context are delineated. As illustrated in the chapters in this volume, the past decade has seen a steady increase in the use of mindfulness-based intervention and prevention programs to foster mental health and well-being in adolescence.3 The growing interest in applying mindfulness-based approaches to the work with adolescents stems from well-established findings that mindfulness interventions are an effective way to improve a wide range of mental and psychological health problems and promote well-being in adult populations.4 Whereas the past fifteen years have seen a dramatic increase in peer-reviewed published mindfulness research with adult populations, theory, research, and the practice of mindfulness with adolescents are still relatively sparse. Nonetheless, this lack of attention to mindfulness in adolescence appears to be on the eve of a revolution. Indeed, within the past decade, scholars have shifted from a cursory interest in the concept of mindfulness in adolescence to explicit attention, as illustrated in the rapid increase of publications on the topic of mindfulness in adolescence in just the last few years. A search in PsycINFO for the phrase “mindfulness and adolescents” from 1985 to 1999 revealed only four citations. From 2000 to 2010, the number of citations grew to a total of eighty-nine citations, and, in just a little over three years (2011 to today), PsycINFO reports a total of eighty-eight publications on mindfulness and adolescents. The mounting interest in the field of mindfulness in adolescence is not only found among scholarly literature but recent years have also seen a parallel increase in attention to mindfulness in adolescence among the general public. Entering the search terms “mindfulness and adolescents” into the search engine Google reveals a total of 12,700,000 hits! As illustrated in the chapters in this volume, emerging theory and research have identified mindfulness-based practices as a promising approach for improving self-regulatory skills, mental health, and well-being in adolescence.5 However, Chapters 1–3 also criticize weak research designs and the absence of follow-up studies to evaluate long-term effects of mindfulness intervention programs for youth. In order to establish the short- and long-term effects of mindfulness trainings on different developmental outcomes in adolescence, clearly more rigorous research is needed and mindfulness as a contemplative science needs to be integrated within a developmental science framework. Taken together, the chapters in this volume review pioneering work that pertains to the extant questions that need to be addressed in order to advance the theory and research on mindfulness-based approaches in adolescence. The questions addressed include: (a) What are the theoretical foundations underlying the role of mindfulness during the developmental period of adolescence?, (b) What are the relations among mindfulness and positive developmental outcomes in adolescence?, and (c) What are some of the ways to foster and promote mindfulness through intervention and prevention programs in adolescence? Furthermore, this volume of New Directions for Youth Development aims to present the current state of research on mindfulness in adolescence. In addition to its contribution to research in the academic context, this volume is aimed to provide direction for advancing the science of mindfulness approaches for adolescence and be a resource for teachers and health practitioners who are interested in incorporating mindfulness into their practice with youth. Eva Oberle is currently a postdoctoral research fellow at CASEL and the University of Illinois at Chicago. Kimberly Schonert-Reichl is a professor in the Department of Educational and Counseling Psychology, and Special Education at the University of British Columbia.