Differential Effects of Two Contemplative Practice-based Programs for Health Care Professionals

Abstract

The aim of the study was testing the differential effectiveness of two interventions to improve Majorcan primary care professionals’ quality of life: Mindful-Based Stress Reduction Training (MBSRT) and Compassion Cultivation Training (CCT). 50 professionals participated in the study; 81% were women. We evaluated mindfulness, empathy, self-compassion, and professional quality of life. Results showed statistically significant effects of the programs on the improvement of mindfulness, self-compassion, and professional quality of life, and differential effects on two dimensions of mindfulness, acting with awareness and non-reacting to inner experience, and on the dimension of burnout of the professional quality of life, in all the cases favoring the MBSRT group. The study concludes that this type of interventions is adequate to improve the aforementioned variables, with better efficacy of the MBSRT for this type of participants.