Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Evaluating Short Versions of the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire Using Rasch Analysis

  • ORIGINAL PAPER
  • Published:
Mindfulness Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The 39-item Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ) is a widely used mindfulness measure that includes five subscales: Act with Awareness, Describe, Nonjudge, Nonreact, and Observe. Short versions of the FFMQ are available in various languages, but these have not been explicitly compared, nor has their compliance with fundamental measurement principles been evaluated using Rasch analysis. A Partial Credit Rasch model was applied to investigate the psychometric properties of four different versions of the FFMQ, ranging from 15 to 24 items, in a sample of 400 participants who completed FFMQ items in English. The best fit to the Rasch model was achieved after the 24-item Dutch FFMQ version was reduced to 18 items by removing locally dependent and misfitting items and combining subscales items into super-items. These results support the psychometric properties and internal validity of the modified 18-item FFMQ (FFMQ-18) as a global short measure of the mindfulness construct and its individual facets. Ordinal responses to the FFMQ-18 can be transformed into interval-level data, using the ordinal-to-interval conversion tables presented here and thus increase accuracy of measurement for the total and subscale scores. This short version is useful for comparisons of mindfulness and its facets at a group level or when investigating the associations of mindfulness with other variables, but the full-scale version is recommended for comparison of individuals’ pre- and post-intervention mindfulness levels.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Allen, M. J., & Yen, W. M. (1979). Introduction to measurement theory. Monterey, CA: Brooks/Cole.

  • Andrich, D., Sheridan, B., & Luo, G. (2009). RUMM 2030. Perth, Australia: RUMM Laboratory.

  • Baer, R. A., Smith, G. T., Hopkins, J., Krietemeyer, J., & Toney, L. (2006). Using self-report assessment methods to explore facets of mindfulness. Assessment, 13(1), 27–45. https://doi.org/10.1177/1073191105283504.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Baer, R. A., Carmody, J., & Hunsinger, M. (2012). Weekly change in mindfulness and perceived stress in a mindfulness-based stress reduction program. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 68(7), 755–765. https://doi.org/10.1002/jclp.21865.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Banerjee, M., Cavanagh, K., & Strauss, C. (2017). Barriers to mindfulness: a path analytic model exploring the role of rumination and worry in predicting psychological and physical engagement in an online mindfulness-based intervention. Mindfulness. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-017-0837-4.

  • Birrer, D., Röthlin, P., & Morgan, G. (2012). Mindfulness to enhance athletic performance: theoretical considerations and possible impact mechanisms. Mindfulness, 3(3), 235–246. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-012-0161-y.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bohlmeijer, E., Prenger, R., Taal, E., & Cuijpers, P. (2010). The effects of mindfulness-based stress reduction therapy on mental health of adults with a chronic medical disease: a meta-analysis. Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 68(6), 539–544. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpsychores.2009.10.005.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bohlmeijer, E., ten Klooster, P. M., Fledderus, M., Veehof, M., & Baer, R. (2011). Psychometric properties of the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire in depressed adults and development of a short form. Assessment, 18(3), 308–320. https://doi.org/10.1177/1073191111408231.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bond, T. G., & Fox, C. M. (2003). Applying the Rasch model: fundamental measurement in the human sciences. Journal of Educational Measurement, 40(2), 185–187. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1745-3984.2003.tb01103.x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brown, K. W., & Ryan, R. M. (2003). The benefits of being present: mindfulness and its role in psychological well-being. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 84(4), 822–848. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.84.4.822.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Brown, D. B., Bravo, A. J., Roos, C. R., & Pearson, M. R. (2015). Five facets of mindfulness and psychological health: evaluating a psychological model of the mechanisms of mindfulness. Mindfulness, 6(5), 1021–1032. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-014-0349-4.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bush, M. (2011). Mindfulness in higher education. Contemporary Buddhism, 12(1), 183–197. https://doi.org/10.1080/010183-197.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chang, V. Y., Palesh, O., Caldwell, R., Glasgow, N., Abramson, M., Luskin, F., …, & Koopman, C. (2004). The effects of a mindfulness-based stress reduction program on stress, mindfulness self-efficacy, and positive states of mind. Stress & Health, 20(3), 141–147. doi:https://doi.org/10.1002/smi.1011.

  • Chang, J.-H., Huang, C.-L., & Lin, Y.-C. (2015). Mindfulness, basic psychological needs fulfillment, and well-being. Journal of Happiness Studies, 16(5), 1149–1162. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-014-9551-2.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chiesa, A., & Serretti, A. (2009). Mindfulness-based stress reduction for stress management in healthy people: a review and meta-analysis. Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, 15(5), 593–600. https://doi.org/10.1089/acm.2008.0495.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Coffey, K. A., & Hartman, M. (2008). Mechanisms of action in the inverse relationship between mindfulness and psychological distress. Complementary Health Practice Review, 13(2), 79–91. https://doi.org/10.1177/1533210108316307.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Coffey, K. A., Hartman, M., & Fredrickson, B. L. (2010). Deconstructing mindfulness and constructing mental health: Understanding mindfulness and its mechanisms of action. Mindfulness, 1(4), 235–253. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-010-0033-2.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fisher, W. (1992). Reliability statistics. Rasch Measurement Transactions, 6(3), 238.

    Google Scholar 

  • Frewen, P. A., Unholzer, F., Logie-Hagan, K. R.-J., & MacKinley, J. D. (2014). Meditation breath attention scores (MBAS): test-retest reliability and sensitivity to repeated practice. Mindfulness, 5(2), 161–169. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-012-0161-y.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gu, J., Strauss, C., Crane, C., Barnhofer, T., Karl, A., Cavanagh, K., & Kuyken, W. (2016). Examining the factor structure of the 39-item and 15-item versions of the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire before and after mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for people with recurrent depression. Psychological Assessment, 28(7), 791–802. https://doi.org/10.1037/pas0000263.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Hou, J., Wong, S. Y.-S., Lo, H. H.-M., Mak, W. W.-S., & Ma, H. S.-W. (2014). Validation of a Chinese version of the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire in Hong Kong and development of a short form. Assessment, 21(3), 363–371. https://doi.org/10.1177/1073191113485121.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hyland, P. K., Lee, R. A., & Mills, M. J. (2015). Mindfulness at work: a new approach to improving individual and organizational performance. Industrial and Organizational Psychology, 8(4), 576–602. https://doi.org/10.1017/iop.2015.41.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kabat-Zinn, J. (1982). An outpatient program in behavioral medicine for chronic pain patients based on the practice of mindfulness meditation: theoretical considerations and preliminary results. General Hospital Psychiatry, 4(1), 33–47. https://doi.org/10.1016/0163-8343(82)90026-3.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kabat-Zinn, J. (1990). Full catastrophe living: using the wisdom of your body and mind to face stress, pain, and illness. New York: Delacourt.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kabat-Zinn, J. (2017). Too early to tell: the potential impact and challenges—ethical and otherwise—inherent in the mainstreaming of Dharma in an increasingly dystopian world. Mindfulness. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-017-0758-2.

  • Kabat-Zinn, J., Wheeler, E., Light, T., Skillings, A., Scharf, M. J., Cropley, T. G., Hosmer, D., & Bernhard, J. D. (1998). Influence of a mindfulness meditation-based stress reduction intervention on rates of skin clearing in patients with moderate to severe psoriasis undergoing phototherapy (UVB) and photochemotherapy (PUVA). Psychosomatic Medicine, 60(5), 625–632. https://doi.org/10.1097/00006842-199809000-00020.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Keane, A. (2014). The influence of therapist mindfulness practice on psychotherapeutic work: a mixed-methods study. Mindfulness, 5(6), 689–703. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-013-0223-9.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Krägeloh, C. U., Bergomi, C., Siegert, R. J., & Medvedev, O. N. (2017). Response shift after a mindfulness-based intervention: measurement invariance testing of the comprehensive inventory of mindfulness experiences. Mindfulness. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-017-0764-4.

  • Lau, M. A., Bishop, S. R., Segal, Z. V., Buis, T., Anderson, N. D., Carlson, L., et al. (2006). The Toronto mindfulness scale: development andvalidation. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 62(12), 1445–1467.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ledesma, D., & Kumano, H. (2009). Mindfulness-based stress reduction and cancer: a meta-analysis. Psycho-Oncology, 18(6), 571–579. https://doi.org/10.1002/pon.1400.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Leung, Y. Y., Png, M. E., Conaghan, P., & Tennant, A. (2017). A systematic literature review on the application of Rasch analysis in musculoskeletal disease—a special interest group report of OMERACT 11. Journal of Rheumatology, 41(1), 159–164. https://doi.org/10.3899/jrheum.130814.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Levinson, D. B., Stoll, E. L., Kindy, S. D., Merry, H. L., & Davidson, R. J. (2014). A mind you can count on: validating breath counting as a behavioral measure of mindfulness. Frontiers in Psychology, 5, 1202. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2014.01202.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Linacre, J. M. (1994). Sample size and item calibration stability. Rasch Measurement Transactions, 7, 328.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lundgren-Nilsson, Å., & Tennant, A. (2011). Past and present issues in Rasch analysis: the functional independence measure (FIM™) revisited. Journal of Reabilitation Medicine, 43, 884–891.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lundgren-Nilsson, Å., Jonsdottir, I. H., Ahlborg, G., et al. (2013). Construct validity of the Psychological General Well Being Index (PGWBI) in a sample of patients undergoing treatment for stress-related exhaustion: a Rasch analysis. Health and Quality of Life Outcomes, 11(2), 2–9.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Ma, S. H., & Teasdale, J. D. (2004). Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for depression: replication and exploration of differential relapse prevention effects. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 72(1), 31–40. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-006X.72.1.31.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • MacDonald, H. Z., & Baxter, E. E. (2017). Mediators of the relationship between dispositional mindfulness and psychological well-being in female college students. Mindfulness. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-016-0611-z.

  • Massion, A. O., Teas, J., Herbert, J. R., Wetheimer, M. D., & Kabat-Zinn, J. (1995). Meditation, melatonin and breast/prostate cancer: hypothesis and preliminary data. Medical Hypotheses, 44(1), 39–46. https://doi.org/10.1016/0306-9877(95)90299-6.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Medvedev, O., Shepherd, D., & Hautus, M. J. (2015). The restorative potential of soundscapes: a physiological investigation. Applied Acoustics, 96, 20–26.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Medvedev, O. N., Siegert, R. J., Feng, X. J., Billington, D. R., Jang, J. Y., & Krägeloh, C. U. (2016a). Measuring trait mindfulness: how to improve the precision of the mindful attention awareness scale using a Rasch model. Mindfulness, 7(2), 384–395.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Medvedev, O. N., Siegert, R. J., Kersten, P., & Krägeloh, C. U. (2016b). Rasch analysis of the Kentucky inventory of mindfulness skills. Mindfulness, 7(2), 466–478.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Medvedev, O. N., Siegert, R. J., Kersten, P., & Krägeloh, C. U. (2017). Improving the precision of the five facet mindfulness questionnaire using a Rasch approach. Mindfulness, 8(4), 995–1008. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-016-0676-8.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nedeljkovic, M., Wirtz, P. H., & Ausfeld-Hafter, B. (2012). Effects of Taiji practice on mindfulness and self-compassion in healthy participants—a randomized controlled trial. Mindfulness, 3(3), 200–208. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-012-0092-7.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Norquist, J. M., Fitzpatrick, R., Dawson, J., & Jenkinson, C. (2004). Comparing alternative Rasch-based methods vs raw scores in measuring change in health. Medical Care, 42(1 Suppl), I25–I36. https://doi.org/10.1097/01.mlr.0000103530.13056.88.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rasch, G. (1961). On general laws and the meaning of measurement in psychology. ​University of  California Press. Symposium conducted at the meeting of the Proceedings of the Fourth Berkeley Symposium on Mathematical Statistics and Probability., Berkeley, California.

  • Rudkin, E., Medvedev, O. N., & Siegert, R. J. (2017). The Five-Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire: why the observing subscale does not predict psychological symptoms. Mindfulness. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-017-0766-2.

  • Segal, Z. V., Williams, J. M. G., & Teasdale, J. D. (2002). Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for depression: a new approach to preventing relapse. New York: Guilford Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shapiro, S. L., Astin, J. A., Bishop, S. R., & Cordova, M. (2005). Mindfulness-based stress reduction for health care professionals: results from a randomized trial. International Journal of Stress Management, 12(2), 164–176. https://doi.org/10.1037/1072-5245.12.2.164.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shore, R., Strauss, C., Cavanagh, K., Hayward, M., & Ellett, L. (2017). A randomised controlled trial of a brief online mindfulness-based intervention on paranoia in a non-clinical sample. Mindfulness. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-017-0774-2.

  • Smith, E. V. (2002). Detecting and evaluation the impact of multidimensionality using item fit statistics and principal component analysis of residuals. Journal of Applied Measurement, 3, 205–231.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Stucki, G., Daltroy, L., Katz, J. N., Johannesson, M., & Liang, M. H. (1996). Interpretation of change scores in ordinal clinical scales and health status measures: the whole may not equal the sum of the parts. Journal of Clinical Epidemiology, 49(7), 711–717. https://doi.org/10.1016/0895-4356(96)00016-9.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Tennant, A., & Conaghan, P. G. (2007). The Rasch measurement model in rheumatology: what is it and why use it? When should it be applied, and what should one look for in a Rasch paper? Arthritis Rheumathology, 57, 1358–1362.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thurstone, L. L. (1931). The measurement of social attitudes. Abnormal and Social Psychology, 27, 249–269.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tomlinson, E. R., Yousaf, O., Vittersø, A. D., & Jones, L. (2017). Dispositional mindfulness and psychological health: a systematic review. Mindfulness. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-017-0762-6.

  • Tran, U. S., Glück, T. M., & Nader, I. W. (2013). Investigating the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ): construction of a short form and evidence of a two-factor higher-order structure of mindfulness. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 69(9), 951–965. https://doi.org/10.1002/jclp.21996.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Wainer, H., & Kiely, G. (1987). Item clusters and computerized adaptive testing: a case for testlets. Journal of Educational Measurement, 24(3), 185–201.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

This study includes data from the doctoral work of the first author funded by the Vice-Chancellor’s Scholarship of the Auckland University of Technology.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Medical and Health Sciences Education, School of Medicine, University of Auckland, Rm 12.025, Bldg 599, 2 Park Rd, Private Bag 92-019, Auckland, Grafton, 1142, New Zealand

    Oleg N. Medvedev

  2. Auckland University of Technology, Auckland, New Zealand

    Elena A. Titkova, Richard J. Siegert & Christian U. Krägeloh

  3. Learning Sciences Institute Australia, Brisbane, Australia

    Yoon-Suk Hwang

Authors
  1. Oleg N. Medvedev
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Elena A. Titkova
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Richard J. Siegert
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Yoon-Suk Hwang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Christian U. Krägeloh
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Oleg N. Medvedev.

Ethics declarations

The study was conducted in compliance with the guidelines of the authors’ university ethics committee, which are consistent with internationally accepted ethical standards.

Conflict of Interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Medvedev, O.N., Titkova, E.A., Siegert, R.J. et al. Evaluating Short Versions of the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire Using Rasch Analysis. Mindfulness 9, 1411–1422 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-017-0881-0

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-017-0881-0

Keywords

Search

Navigation