Dissertation Defense-Mary Blendermann

Facets of State Mindfulness as Predictors of Repetitive Thought Onset Repetitive thought is a defining feature and transdiagnostic mechanism of internalizing psychopathology, for which mindfulness-based interventions show preliminary evidence of efficacy. At the momentary level, state mindfulness is expected to protect against repetitive thought episodes, but more research is needed to inform the development of personalized interventions. Theoretical models predict that two aspects of state mindfulness are relevant for inhibiting repetitive thought: attentional monitoring, which is involved in reducing automatic responses including those that contribute to repetitive thought, and acceptance, which could prevent repetitive thought from triggering affective internalizing symptoms. However, evidence conflicts regarding which aspects of state mindfulness are distinguishable on a momentary timescale, and whether acceptance moderates the relationship between attentional monitoring and repetitive thought severity. The present study used multilevel confirmatory factor analysis (MCFA) and multilevel structural equation modeling (MSEM) to investigate 1) competing two- and five-factor models of the latent structure of state mindfulness; 2) nonreactivity as a within-person moderator of associations between attentional monitoring and next-signal repetitive thought; and 3) within-person associations between nonjudging, repetitive thought severity, and negative affect. Participants were N = 270 community-dwelling adults (M age = 29.78 years, 61.48% women) oversampled for elevated trait repetitive thought who completed an ecological momentary assessment (EMA) protocol as part of a larger study on the latent structure of repetitive thought. Participants completed a single-item repetitive thought severity screener 8 times a day for 14 days. If they endorsed repetitive thought, they rated other repetitive thought features; or, if repetitive thought was mild or absent, they rated thei