Mindfulness-based family psychoeducation intervention for caregivers of young adults with first-episode psychosis: results at 9-month follow-up.

Objectives: To investigate the effects of a mindfulness-based family psychoeducation (MBFPE) intervention on caregivers and the young adults with first-episode psychosis in mental health care.
Methods: Sixty-five caregivers were randomly assigned to the MBFPE program (n = 33) or an ordinary family psychoeducation (FPE) program (n = 32). Eighteen young adults in recovery (YAIR) also participated in the study. All of the participants completed the assessments before participating in the intervention (T1), after the intervention (T2), and at 9-month follow-up (T3).
Results: Intention-to-treat analyses were conducted. The caregivers reported a significant and large effect size on positive caregiving experiences based on a Time × Group analysis ( g = 0.862, p = 0.006). Among the YAIR participants, between-group differences were significant in their perceptions of caregivers' expressed emotions, including large effect sizes of perceived criticism ( g = 1.396, p = 0.049) and hostility ( g = 1.444, p = 0.043). Caregiver demographics, including age, education level, socioeconomic status, and number of family members, were found to moderate the effect sizes of the variables studied.
Conclusion: This study provides evidence of the effects of MBFPE programs on the outcomes of caregivers and the young adults with first-episode psychosis in their care. Specifically, the MBFPE program in this study played a greater role in promoting positive caregiving experiences and changing caregivers' expressed emotions, especially their expressed criticism of YAIR, compared with the regular FPE program. Therefore, the application of mindfulness training to promote family care and YAIR recovery should be encouraged.
Clinical Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov, identifier NCT03688009.
Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest. The author(s) declared that they were an editorial board member of Frontiers, at the time of submission. This had no impact on the peer review process and the final decision.
(Copyright © 2024 Zhang, Lo, Ho, Lau, Ng, Mak, Wong, Hung, Lai, Lo, Wong, Lui, Siu, Yan, Chan, Lin, Wong, Mak, Tam and Tse.)