Mindfulness

The ability to be mindful may have an impact on an individual’s emotional experience by altering how exactly emotions are experienced and to what degree they are felt. It’s been found that mindfulness is negatively related to the fear of losing control of one’s emotions or fear of the emotional experience (Robins, Keng, Ekblad & Brantley, 2012). Mindfulness here, is based in the five facets that Baer et al. (2008) identified as integral to mindfulness: awareness, observing, describing, non-reactivity and non-judging. The relationship between mindfulness and fear of emotion presents such that those who are more mindful are less fearful of their emotions, implying that mindfulness has a role in controlling the fear towards feeling emotions, thus, allowing people to be more accepting of their emotional
However, it may be easier for an individual who is mindful, as they may be more aware of what their goals are and whether a particular situation is worth investing oneself in based on these goals. In addition, mindfulness can also play a role in secondary appraisal as to how one reacts in a particular situation. Somebody who is mindful may be less reactive and think through their options, instead of jumping into a situation without thinking. Mindfulness may also impact how individuals view their actions after the experience, by allowing them to view the past more clearly and withhold judgment on their actions. These alterations in appraisal will affect the strategies that an individual employs to regulate their emotions, such that one high in mindfulness may be less likely to ruminate or respond with aggression or anger and instead be able to stay in the present and remain non-reactive until the appropriate response has been generated. This indicates that mindfulness may be an important factor for healthy emotional