Cognitive Effects of Mindfulness Training: Results of a Pilot Study Based on a Theory Driven Approach

Wimmer, Lena; Bellingrath, Silja; Stockhausen, Lisa von

doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2016.01037

Cited by 38 publications

(41 citation statements)

References 68 publications

(102 reference statements)

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“…Having said that, it is comparable or larger to many previous mindfulness studies in similar settings that have shown effects (see e.g. Chambers et al 2008;Wimmer et al 2016;Orzech et al 2009) and is larger than would usually be found in cognitive studies that have used similar tasks (e.g. Thornton et al 2014;Kristjánsson et al 2014).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 61%

Meditation, Cognitive Flexibility and Well-Being

Hartkamp

Thornton

2017

J Cogn Enhanc

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A number of previous studies have suggested that mindfulness meditation can enhance cognitive performance. Although both western empirical findings and Buddhist psychological theory have emphasised a role for cognitive flexibility in the development and maintenance of mental health, few studies have specifically focused on flexibility in relation to mindfulness. The present study used a range of objective, behavioural measures to assess cognitive flexibility in 41 individuals before and after a 6-day intensive Vipassana (mindfulness) retreat. Subjective assessments of mindfulness, positive functioning and well-being were also taken. A comparably sized control group of students and government employees was given the same pre-and post-test measures. In contrast to our expectations and to previous reports, there were no significant changes in cognitive performance, over and above practice-related improvements also shown by the control group. Retreat participants did, however, register positive improvements on the subjective measures. We discuss possible limitations with our experimental design and highlight important issues that may assist future studies aiming to assess effects of mindfulness in the cognitive domain.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 61%

Meditation, Cognitive Flexibility and Well-Being

Hartkamp

Thornton

2017

J Cogn Enhanc

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“…Further, regulation of the speed-accuracy tradeoff within the three components of executive control might be the unifying mechanism through which yoga training is influential. Studies examining the effect of mindfulness-related practice on cognitive task performance report either speed (RT) or accuracy, but not both, as in the case with working memory tasks (e.g., Jella and Shannahoff-Khalsa, 1993;Jyothsna and Rao, 2014;Sharma et al, 2014;Johnson et al, 2015;Jansen et al, 2017;Purohit and Pradhan, 2017;Crivelli et al, 2018), planning and cognitive flexibility (e.g., Levine et al, 2011;Kiani et al, 2016), and inhibitory control (e.g., Lakey et al, 2007;Semple, 2010;Alfonso et al, 2011;Moore et al, 2012;Kiani et al, 2016;Wimmer et al, 2016). Results suggest that analyzing speedaccuracy tradeoff might be useful in exploring the unifying mechanism by which yoga and other mindfulness practices might enhance executive control.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Attention to a goal-directed movement needed for performing a yoga posture seemed to be associated with attention shifting when learning a new rule, whereas breath control might be linked with the speed of planning and flexibility. Breath-focused mindfulness (MBSR) did not affect cognitive flexibility among fifth-grade children (Wimmer et al, 2016) or patients with multiple sclerosis (Amiri et al, 2016), suggestive of the importance of postural control training. However, more focused efforts are needed to delineate the responsiveness of this cognitive domain to motor and respiratory components of the training and to test whether the interaction of motor and breath control impacts the speedaccuracy tradeoff.…”

Section: Planning and Cognitive Flexibilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Enhancing Executive Control: Attention to Balance, Breath, and the Speed Versus Accuracy Tradeoff

Singh

Mutreja

2020

Front. Psychol.

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Malleability of executive control and its enhancement through yoga training is unclear. In Study 1, participants (yoga group; n = 27, mean = 23.27 years) were tested on executive control tasks pre-and post-8 weeks of yoga training. The training focused on attention to postural control during yoga asanas and respiratory control during pranayamabreathing (30 min each of postural and breath control training, biweekly). Yoga training was assessed via performance ratings as to how well a posture was executed and by examining errors that reflected inattention/failures in postural and breath control. We also explored whether attentional demands on motor and respiratory control were associated with three components of executive control (working memory, cognitive flexibility, and inhibition) during nine executive control tasks. Partial correlation results revealed that the three components of executive control might be differentially impacted by postural and breath control and selectively associated with either speed or accuracy (except for cognitive flexibility). Attentional demands influenced the link between postural, breath, and cognitive control. In Study 2, comparisons between a yoga group and a gendermatched control group (control group; n = 27, mean = 23.33 years) pointed toward higher working memory accuracy and a better speed-accuracy tradeoff in inhibitory control in the yoga group. A ceiling-practice effect was addressed by examining yoga practice learning (i.e., practice-induced change in postural and breath control reflected in ratings and errors) on executive control performance across two sets of tasks: repeatedly tested (pre-and post-8 weeks) and non-repeatedly tested (post-8 weeks). Attention to motor and respiratory control during yoga might be considered as a potential mechanism through which specific components of executive control in young adults might be enhanced potentially via altering of speed-accuracy tradeoff.

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“…A task based on a visual search task by the Biederman lab (Biederman et al, 1973(Biederman et al, , 1982 was used to assess the capacity for data-driven information processing (cf. Wimmer et al, 2016). Participants were to decide whether a prime object that was presented for 5 s also appeared in a subsequent image of an everyday scene (for more details on the stimuli, please refer to Wimmer et al, 2016).…”

Section: Data-driven Information Processingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Wimmer et al, 2016). Participants were to decide whether a prime object that was presented for 5 s also appeared in a subsequent image of an everyday scene (for more details on the stimuli, please refer to Wimmer et al, 2016). In 25% of all trials, the target picture exhibited the prime object in its expected position, in another 25%, it presented the object in an unexpected location, and in half of the trials, it did not include the prime object at all.…”

Section: Data-driven Information Processingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mindfulness Training for Improving Attention Regulation in University Students: Is It Effective? and Do Yoga and Homework Matter?

2020

Self Cite

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The present study examined the effects of mindfulness training on attention regulation in university students and whether the potential benefits of implementation are influenced by the yoga component of mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) and/or by MBI homework practice. In a non-randomized trial with pre-and post-assessments, n = 180 university students were allocated to either mindfulness training (experimental groups), awareness activities (active control group), or no training (passive control group). Mindfulness was taught through two MBIs, one including yoga and the other excluding yoga. Attention regulation was operationalized via behavioral indicators, namely sustained attention, cognitive flexibility, cognitive inhibition, and data-driven information processing. With the exception of speed in a cognitive flexibility task, the results indicated no systematic or differential advantage arising from mindfulness training, with or without yoga, regarding the aspects of attention regulation. There was no consistent influence of homework quantity or quality. The implications for mindfulness training in academic contexts are discussed.

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Cognitive Effects of Mindfulness Training: Results of a Pilot Study Based on a Theory Driven Approach

Cited by 38 publications

References 68 publications

Meditation, Cognitive Flexibility and Well-Being

Meditation, Cognitive Flexibility and Well-Being

Enhancing Executive Control: Attention to Balance, Breath, and the Speed Versus Accuracy Tradeoff

Mindfulness Training for Improving Attention Regulation in University Students: Is It Effective? and Do Yoga and Homework Matter?

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