The Efficacy of Mindfulness based Intervention on Subclinical Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Symptoms and Externalizing Problems in Adolescents

the present study examined the efficacy of mindfulness based intervention in reducing subclinical attention deficit/hyperactivity symptoms and externalizing problems in adolescents. The Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) and the Youth Self–report (YSR) of Achenbach System of Empirically Based Assessment (ASEBA) were administered to a sample of 253 adolescents and their mothers. Twenty four of adolescents who scored borderline in attention problem subscale, scored high in externalizing problems scale of CBCL, and their scores had been confirmed by the Youth Self-report were selected and randomly assigned into either experimental (n=12) or control (n=12) groups. The experimental group received 8 mindfulness based intervention sessions for 8 weeks. The data were analyzed using multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA). The results indicated that attention deficit/ hyperactivity symptoms and externalizing problems reduced significantly in experimental group compared to control group. The findings of this study may be of practical importance for prevention and treatment of adolescent's attention deficit/ hyperactivity symptoms and externalizing problems in clinical settings and schools.