Brief, daily meditation enhances attention, memory, mood, and emotional regulation in non-experienced meditators

Behavioural Brain Research
Julia C BassoWendy A Suzuki

Abstract

Meditation is an ancient practice that cultivates a calm yet focused mind; however, little is known about how short, practical meditation practices affect cognitive functioning in meditation-naïve populations. To address this question, we randomized subjects (ages of 18-45) who were non-experienced meditators into either a 13-min daily guided meditation session or a 13-min daily podcast listening session (control group) for a total duration of 8 weeks. We examined the effects of the daily meditation practice relative to podcast listening on mood, prefrontal and hippocampal functioning, baseline cortisol levels, and emotional regulation using the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST). Compared to our control group, we found that 8 but not 4 weeks of brief, daily meditation decreased negative mood state and enhanced attention, working memory, and recognition memory as well as decreased state anxiety scores on the TSST. Furthermore, we report that meditation-induced changes in emotional regulation are more strongly linked to improved affective state than improved cognition. This study not only suggests a lower limit for the duration of brief daily meditation needed to see significant benefits in non-experienced meditators, but suggests ...Continue Reading

Citations

Apr 23, 2020·Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience·Nicole Wolff, Christian Beste
May 26, 2020·Psychological Reports·Molly A YoungsRobin S S Kramer
Jan 7, 2020·Psychology & Health·Nicola S SchutteShian-Ling Keng
Sep 15, 2019·Scientific Reports·Catherine I AndreuHeleen A Slagter
Sep 26, 2019·Frontiers in Human Neuroscience·Erika NyhusIsabella Marie Wang Vakkur
Nov 7, 2019·Nursing Forum·Adrienne FasbinderMeriam Caboral-Stevens
May 13, 2020·International Journal of Behavioral Medicine·Elina Järvelä-ReijonenMarjukka Kolehmainen
Nov 17, 2020·Frontiers in Psychology·Teresa FaziaLuisa Bernardinelli
Jun 12, 2020·Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews·Golnaz Tabibnia
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Nov 13, 2020·Clinical and Experimental Gastroenterology·Umakant DaveSimon David Taylor-Robinson
Jan 1, 2021·International Journal of Nursing Studies·Chuntana ReangsingJoanne Kraenzle Schneider
Feb 13, 2021·The Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology : QJEP·Ke MaBernhard Hommel
Jan 11, 2022·Aging & Mental Health·Nesha HarperJ Kaci Fairchild

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