Effects of MBCT training on anxiety-related personality traits in medical students: a pilot study

Medical students with high trait anxiety are susceptible to learning- and society-related stress. The present study explored the impact of MBCT training on anxiety-related personality traits in medical students. A total of 425 Chinese medical undergraduate students were surveyed using a trait anxiety subscale, the mindful attention awareness scale (MAAS), psychological resilience scale and a custom demographic questionnaire. The MAAS and psychological resilience were important factors predicting the trait anxiety level, contributing 69% of the variance. Thirty individuals with high trait anxiety were recruited to take part in MBCT training, which comprised eight topics (including awareness and automatic pilot, living in our own mind, etc.). The training was carried out as an extra-curricular activity students attended for eight consecutive weeks, with a particular focus on the susceptibility of an anxiety-related personality and the cognitive model about selective attention to dangerous stimuli and rumination. Post-MBCT training, 86.67% of the students had a reduced trait anxiety score, with a reduction to the cut-off value or below in 46.67% of the students. Interestingly, the post-training MAAS score was significantly different between medical students with and without significantly improved trait anxiety, but this trend was not observed for psychological resilience. The scores for trait anxiety and the MAAS in the healthy control group remained largely the same, except for an increase in psychological resilience. On the whole, after eight weeks, the scores of the MAAS and CD-RISC for all of the participants increased in the order healthy control group > responder group > non-responder group. Our findings not only validate the efficacy of MBCT training on anxiety, but also verify the contribution of the MAAS to improving trait anxiety and suggest that integrating some resilience-related content in the MBCT course may better improve the effectiveness of the psychological training. To ameliorate anxiety in vulnerable individuals, systematic training courses focusing on mindfulness and resilience need to be developed and further integrated as an important part of the personal and professional development for Chinese medical students.