A conditional process model of the effect of mindfulness on 800m personal best times through pain catastrophizing

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between mindfulness and 800m PB times through pain catastrophizing and to see whether the magnitude and direction of the relationship depended on gender. One hundred and nine participants reported their gender, completed measures of mindfulness (MAAS) and pain catastrophizing (PCS) and reported personal best 800m times that were standardized based on current world records. Results revealed moderate sized relationships between the predictor variables and standardized 800m PB. The size of these relationships reduced after we controlled for gender. The follow-up, conditional process analysis, revealed significant direct and indirect effects that confirmed that pain catastrophizing partially mediated the relationship between mindfulness and 800m PB and gender moderated the indirect paths. The indirect path between mindfulness and pain catastrophizing was consistent with existing literature. However, the path between pain catastrophizing and standardized 800m PB was positive for females and negative for males. The different direction of the relationship could suggest that pain catastrophizing could be performance enhancing for females.