The link between stress, well-being, and psychological flexibility during an Acceptance and Commitment Therapy self-help intervention.
Journal article

The link between stress, well-being, and psychological flexibility during an Acceptance and Commitment Therapy self-help intervention.

  • Wersebe H University of Basel, Switzerland.
  • Lieb R University of Basel, Switzerland.
  • Meyer AH University of Basel, Switzerland.
  • Hofer P University of Basel, Switzerland.
  • Gloster AT University of Basel, Switzerland.
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  • 2018-11-30
Published in:
  • International journal of clinical and health psychology : IJCHP. - 2018
English Background/Objective: Prolonged stress can overwhelm coping resources, leading people to seek mental health care. Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) is an intervention that enhances well-being and reduces distress, assumedly by means of increasing psychological flexibility (PF). We examined the association between a total increase in PF during an intervention and decreases in stress and increases in well-being during and after the intervention. Method: The intervention was a randomized controlled trial of an ACT-based self-help intervention. Participants were 91 individuals reporting elevated levels of work-related stress. Measurements were completed at preintervention, postintervention, and 3-month follow-up. Results: Structural equation models revealed that the total increase in PF during the intervention was negatively associated with a decrease in stress (b = -0.63, SE = 0.14, p < .001) and positively associated with an increase in well-being during the intervention (b = 0.48, SE = 0.11, p < .001), but not with a decrease in stress (b = 0.03, SE = 0.27, p > .05) and well-being (b = -0.04, SE = 0.39, p > .05) following the intervention. Conclusions: Our study provides empirical support for decreasing stress and promoting well-being through ACT and emphasizes the potential of PF in promoting well-being.
Language
  • English
Open access status
gold
Identifiers
Persistent URL
https://folia.unifr.ch/global/documents/130310
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