A Preliminary Analysis of the Psychometric Properties of the Mindful Attention Awareness Scale Among African American College Students

The mindful attention awareness scale (MAAS) is a widely used measure of mindfulness that has been used in examining the construct of mindfulness in a variety of populations. However, the MAAS has been validated in primarily White samples to date. Mindfulness may be a promising construct among African Americans, but no measure of mindfulness has been validated for African Americans. The present study examined the psychometric properties of the MAAS in a sample of African American college students (n=569). Measures of psychological distress and psychological flexibility were given in addition to the MAAS through an online survey portal. A confirmatory factor analysis showed that the MAAS showed a unidimensional factor structure in the present sample. In addition, the MAAS showed excellent internal consistency and was related to lower levels of psychological distress and higher psychological flexibility. This preliminary study suggests that researchers studying mindfulness among African Americans may use the MAAS with evidence supporting its utility.