Poster #5

Ethno-racial trauma and mindfulness approaches for Latinx communities in the U.S.

By: Daniela Sarmiento Hernandez, B.S., and Maryam Kia-Keating, PhD

Abstract:

Latinx communities in the U.S. face a unique combination of acculturative, systemic, and traumatic stresses, including adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). These cumulative stressors heighten risk for negative mental and physical health outcomes (Chavez-Dueñas, et al. 2019) Mindfulness interventions seem to be a promising approach to improve the well-being of Latinx communities and address the negative sequelae trauma and adversity (Maguire-Jack et al., 2019; Nagy et al., 2022). This systematic review examined meta-analyses and 20+ studies on mindfulness-based interventions in Latinx populations in English and Spanish, both nationally and internationally. The review identified salient themes in existing research, significant gaps which still exist, and ways the field can move towards creating and disseminating more relevant clinical mindfulness interventions. Findings suggest that mindfulness interventions are feasible and acceptable for Latinx population, however, without intervention, Latinxs are less likely to engage in them due to cultural and economic barriers (Cotter & Jones, 2019; Olano et al., 2015). Evidence exists for how to effectively address these barriers, including offering multiple linguistic options for the intervention, providing integrative frameworks to discuss mindfulness and religion, facilitating transportation and childcare, and using culturally-responsive emotion regulation techniques, guided visualizations, and storytelling (Hinton et al., 2013; Nagy et al., 2022). A number of gaps remain, such as the need to examine anti-oppressive mindfulness practices to address racism, increase Latinx representation in clinical settings, employ community-engaged strategies and strength-based approaches, and use novel dissemination methods, such as digital intervention and prevention programs (Cotter & Jones, 2019; Newsome et al., 2012). Implications for future research and practice considerations for mindfulness-based interventions to improve the well-being of Latinx populations will be discussed.