When Mindfulness Becomes a Mental Health Risk: The Relevance of Emotion Regulation Difficulties and Need Frustration

Abstract

Although a great deal of research has shown the positive effects of mindfulness on mental health, some studies have provided evidence that mindfulness can have negative consequences. However, not much is known about the conditions that can account for such negative effects. We examined the moderating roles of difficulties in emotion regulation and basic psychological need frustration in the relationship between mindfulness and psychological ill-being. Longitudinal data were collected at three points in time during a 6-month period from two adult samples in Turkey and Germany. Self-report measures were used to measure ill-being, mindfulness, emotion regulation difficulties, and need frustration. In the German sample, difficulties in emotion regulation and need frustration were related to ill-being, but there were no significant interactions. In the Turkish sample, need frustration predicted ill-being, and the interaction between mindfulness and difficulties in emotion regulation also predicted ill-being. Mindfulness was a protective factor among people with no major difficulties in emotion regulation, whereas it was a risk factor among those with emotion regulation difficulties. The findings suggest that the relationship between mindfulness and ill-being may be more complex than previously thought.