Self-expansion perceptions and behaviors uniquely contribute to relationship quality over time.

Self-expansion refers to the process of broadening the self via engaging in novel activities, gaining new skills, and acquiring new perspectives and is proposed to be driven in large part by one's close relationships. Self-expansion experiences include perceptions of potential (i.e., beliefs about how self-expanding a relationship could be in the future), perceptions of current experiences (i.e., beliefs about how self-expanding a relationship is present), and enacted behaviors (i.e., engagement in novel, interesting activities). In two preregistered dyadic daily experience studies, we examined whether self-expansion potential is an antecedent to behavioral self-expansion and current perceptions, and how these distinct self-expansion components uniquely and synergistically predict relationship satisfaction and commitment daily and over time. Results revealed that self-expansion potential prospectively predicted both behavioral self-expansion and daily perceptions of current self-expansion. Self-expansion potential, current perceptions, and behaviors separately predicted greater relationship satisfaction and commitment daily. Self-expansion potential-but not behaviors or current perceptions-also positively predicted satisfaction and commitment 2 months later. Implications regarding the power of potential in relationships are discussed, including the need for future research to consider this important facet of self-expansion. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Mindfulness-based programmes and 'bigger than self' issues: protocol for a scoping review.

INTRODUCTION: Mindfulness-based programmes (MBPs) have an established, growing evidence base as interventions to optimise health, well-being and performance of individual participants. Emerging evidence suggests that MBPs also enhance prosociality, encouraging individuals to contribute to positive social change. This study focuses on the potential of MBPs to facilitate development of participants' inner resources that support prosocial shifts. The review seeks to detect shifts in MBP benefit from individual toward 'bigger than self', informing and empowering individual and collective responses to complex societal and global issues. The review aims to map current literature on MBPs and social change, into a descriptive overview with commentary on quality, trends, theoretical models and gaps, and on how training in MBPs potentially enables individual and collective responses to societal and global issues. Recommendations for future directions for researchers seeking to advance this evidence base, and practitioners developing innovative MBPs for this purpose will be provided. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: A scoping review of peer-reviewed literature will be undertaken and reported on according to the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews guidance. Systematic searches of four scientific databases will be undertaken to identify potentially eligible articles published from all time to current date. Data will be extracted using an extraction template and analysed descriptively using narrative synthesis. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: This scoping review involves no human participants, so ethics is not required. Findings will be shared through professional networks, conference presentations and journal publication.

Partners' Relationship Mindfulness Promotes Better Daily Relationship Behaviours for Insecurely Attached Individuals.

Attachment anxiety and avoidance are generally associated with detrimental relationship processes, including more negative and fewer positive relationship behaviours. However, recent theoretical and empirical evidence has shown that positive factors can buffer insecure attachment. We hypothesised that relationship mindfulness (RM)-open or receptive attention to and awareness of what is taking place internally and externally in a current relationship-may promote better day-to-day behaviour for both anxious and avoidant individuals, as mindfulness improves awareness of automatic responses, emotion regulation, and empathy. In a dyadic daily experience study, we found that, while an individual's own daily RM did not buffer the effects of their own insecure attachment on same-day relationship behaviours, their partner's daily RM did, particularly for attachment avoidance. Our findings for next-day relationship behaviours, on the other hand, showed that lower (vs. higher) prior-day RM was associated with higher positive partner behaviours on the following day for avoidant individuals and those with anxious partners, showing this may be an attempt to "make up" for the previous day. These findings support the Attachment Security Enhancement Model and have implications for examining different forms of mindfulness over time and for mindfulness training.