Embodied Mindfulness Questionnaire (EMQ)

Abstract

The Embodied Mindfulness Questionnaire (EMQ), developed by Khoury et al. in 2023, is a 24-item instrument designed to measure embodiment within the context of mindfulness. It conceptualizes embodied mindfulness as a skill or ability that encompasses attention, awareness, and acceptance, all involving the intricate connections between the mind, body, and their associations. The development of this measure spanned three distinct studies and was initiated to address a gap in existing mindfulness assessments, which often lack the integration of embodiment. The items for the EMQ were created through a collaborative process involving consultations with a panel of eight graduate students and a review by a group of 10 field experts. Initially, a 48-item version of the EMQ was administered to an online sample of individuals in Canada. Subsequent exploratory and confirmatory analyses refined the instrument, resulting in a 5-factor structure that retained 24 items. The validation process reported strong internal consistency, as well as convergent and discriminant validity. The developers noted that a limitation of their study was the failure to examine the test-retest reliability of the questionnaire.

Keywords

Acceptance of Feelings and Bodily Sensations, Attention and Awareness of Feelings and Bodily Sensations, Awareness of the Mind-Body Connection, Body Awareness, Cognitive Measures, Connection with the Body, Detachment from Automatic Thinking, Emotion Recognition, Meditation, Mind Body Therapy, Mindfulness, Somesthetic Perception

Authors

Khoury, Bassam; Vergara, Rodrigo C.; Sadowski, Isabel; Spinelli, Christina

---

Purpose

The purpose of this measure is to assess embodied mindfulness.

Construct

Embodied Mindfulness

Validity

Convergent validity results indicated that three of the EMQ subscales—Attention and Awareness of Feelings and Bodily Sensations, Detachment from Automatic Thinking, and Disconnection from the Body—effectively capture the core elements typically measured in mindfulness assessments. For discriminant validity, the findings showed that the EMQ subscales are capable of predicting scores on measures of psychological symptoms (such as depression, anxiety, and stress), scores of positive and negative emotions, and the total hours of meditative practice. These subscales explained between 20% and 30% of the total variance in the scores on these related measures.

Reliability

The internal consistency for the measure was evaluated, with Cronbach’s alpha coefficients for the factors ranging from .79 to .97.

Factor Analysis

An Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) was conducted, which yielded the five proposed factors. All absolute values of the factor loadings and their lower 95% confidence intervals were above the 0.3 threshold, leading to the retention of 25 items initially. Subsequently, a Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) confirmed a five-factor solution, which refined the scale to 24 items. The CFA results indicated a good model fit with a Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) measure of 0.87, a Root Mean Square Error of Approximation (RMSEA) of 0.07, and a Tucker-Lewis Index (TLI) of 0.9.

The five factors identified are:

• Detachment from Automatic Thinking

• Attention and Awareness of Feelings and Bodily Sensations

• Connection with the Body

• Awareness of the Mind-Body Connection

• Acceptance (i.e., non-avoidance) of Feelings and Bodily Sensations

Instrument

• Test Type: This is an original inventory/questionnaire.

• Format: The measure utilizes a 5-point Likert-type scale for each item, with responses ranging from 1 (almost never) to 5 (almost always). The instrument is administered electronically.

• Language Available: English

• Population Group: Human, Male, Female

• Age Group: The instrument is designed for individuals from adolescence through older adulthood (ages 13-65+).

• Population Details: The development studies were conducted in Canada with individuals recruited online, with respondent ages ranging from 15 to 75 years.

• Test Methodology: The development and validation process involved several analytical methods, including: Test Validity, Content Validity, Convergent Validity, Discriminant Validity, Test Reliability, Internal Consistency, Factor Analysis, Confirmatory Factor Analysis, and Exploratory Factor Analysis.

Keywords

Acceptance of Feelings and Bodily Sensations, Attention and Awareness of Feelings and Bodily Sensations, Awareness of the Mind-Body Connection, Body Awareness, Cognitive Measures, Connection with the Body, Detachment from Automatic Thinking, Emotion Recognition, Meditation, Mind Body Therapy, Mindfulness, Somesthetic Perception

Authors

• Khoury, Bassam

  • Author ocrid Identifier: No data is Available

  • Affiliation: McGill University

  • Email addresses: [email protected]

  • Correspondence Address: McGill University, Department of Educational & Counselling Psychology, 3700 McTavish Street, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, H3A 1Y2, [email protected]

• Vergara, Rodrigo C.

  • Author ocrid Identifier: No data is Available

  • Affiliation: Universidad Metropolitana de Ciencias de la Educación

  • Email addresses: No data is Available

  • Correspondence Address: No data is Available

• Sadowski, Isabel

  • Author ocrid Identifier: No data is Available

  • Affiliation: McGill University

  • Email addresses: No data is Available

  • Correspondence Address: No data is Available

• Spinelli, Christina

  • Author ocrid Identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1127-9476

  • Affiliation: McGill University

  • Email addresses: No data is Available

  • Correspondence Address: No data is Available

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

• Permissions: To use the instrument, it is necessary to contact the corresponding author.

• Fee: No fee is charged for the use of this test.

• Commercial: This test is not for commercial use.

• Test Year: 2023

reference’s

Khoury, B., Vergara, R. C., Sadowski, I., & Spinelli, C. (2023). Embodied Mindfulness Questionnaire: Scale development and validation. Assessment, 30(2), 458–483. https://doi.org/10.1177/10731911211059856

Items of the Embodied Mindfulness Questionnaire

This measure consists of 24 items. The specific test items are not available in the provided source material and can be found in the original publication in Table 5 on page 469.