Stress on health-related quality of life in older adults: the protective nature of mindfulness
Open accessAbstract
OBJECTIVES: The current study examined whether the link between stress and health-related quality of life was buffered by protective factors, namely mindfulness, in a sample of middle-aged and older adults. METHODS: In this cross-sectional study, 134 healthy, community-dwelling adults (ages 50-85 years) were recruited from Dallas, TX. The participants were screened for depressive symptoms and severity (using the Patient Health Questionnaire [PHQ-9]). All participants completed measures of self-reported health status (i.e. SF36v2: mental and physical health composites), life stress (using the Elders Life Stress Inventory [ELSI]), and trait mindfulness (i.e. Mindful Attention Awareness Scale). RESULTS: Hierarchical regressions (covarying for age, gender, and education) showed that life stress was inversely related to physical and mental health. Mindfulness was positively related to mental health. The negative effect of life stress on mental health was weakened for those individuals with higher levels of trait mindfulness. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that mindfulness is a powerful, adaptive strategy that may protect middle-aged and older adults from the well-known harmful effects of stress on mental health.
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Modified MBCT has been shown effective in reducing depressive symptoms, anxiety, and/or stress in older adults.
“Modified MBCT has been shown effective in reducing depressive symptoms, anxiety, and/or stress in older adults [1–4].”
From Effectiveness of an age-modified mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) in improving mental health in older people with depressive symptoms: a non-randomised controlled trial. (2025) · cites this paper as [4]
The Discussion (page not available) reports that mindfulness buffered the negative effects of stress on mental health in older adults. But this was a cross-sectional study of trait mindfulness, not a test of modified MBCT, and it does not show that modified MBCT reduced depressive symptoms, anxiety, or stress. (LLM, conf=0.82)
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References 38 · Cited by 165
- Authors
- de Frias, C. M., & Whyne, E.
- Affiliations
- The University of Texas at Dallas (US)
- ORCID
- Whyne, Erum
- Venue
- Aging & Mental Health
- Publisher
- Informa UK Limited
- Published
- 2014-06-18
- Volume
- 19
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 201-206
- ISSN
- 1360-7863 (ISSN-L)
- 1364-6915
- PMC
- PMC4299552
- OpenAlex
- W2089412759
- Cited by
- 165
- References
- 38
- Citations by year
- 2026: 8 · 2025: 8 · 2024: 13 · 2023: 23 · 2022: 13 · 2021: 25 · 2020: 24 · 2019: 16 · 2018: 13 · 2017: 4 · 2016: 11 · 2015: 7
- FWCI
- 8.65
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- Aging & Mental Health (publishedVersion)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- Fonds pour la Formation à la Recherche dans l’Industrie et dans l’Agriculture
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Mindfulness and Compassion Interventions
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Health, psychology, and well-being
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Health and Well-being Studies
- Keywords
- mindfulness, life events, health-related quality of life, older adults, middle-aged adults, mental health, physical health, protective factors, buffering effect, depressive symptoms, stress buffering
- MeSH terms
- Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Aging, Female, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Quality of Life, Stress, Psychological, Mindfulness
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