One of MMFT’s unique strengths is a curriculum that draws on cutting-edge neuroscience and stress and trauma research.  MMFT was initially adapted from Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), the most common and well-validated mindfulness training program in the world, with three decades of research documenting its utility.  MMFT has been empirically tested through rigorous neuroscience research in collaboration with Dr. Amishi Jha, a neuroscientist at the University of Pennsylvania.  In 2008, we conducted a pilot study of MMFT to test its cognitive, psychological and behavioral effects among U.S. Marines before their deployment to Iraq.

We continue to study MMFT’s effects through on-going research collaboration with Jha’s lab, funded by the U.S. government.  We are currently conducting a large, multi-year, randomized control study for the U.S. Army, to evaluate different versions of MMFT during pre-deployment.  In return, the data gathered from our research helps us to refine general scientific understanding of the mechanisms by which MMFT has its beneficial effects.