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Abstract
Mindfulness training (MT) is a form of mental training in which individuals engage in exercises to cultivate an attentive, present centered, and non-reactive mental mode. The present study examines the putative benefits of MT in University students for whom mind wandering can interfere with learning and academic success. We tested the hypothesis that short-form MT (7 h over 7 weeks) contextualized for the challenges and concerns of University students may reduce mind wandering and improve working memory. Performance on the sustained attention to response task (SART) and two working memory tasks (operation span, delayed-recognition with distracters) was indexed in participants assigned to a waitlist control group or the MT course. Results demonstrated MT-related benefits in SART performance. Relative to the control group, MT participants had higher task accuracy and self-reported being more “on-task” after the 7-week training period. MT did not significantly benefit the operation span task or accuracy on the delayed-recognition task. Together these results suggest that while short-form MT did not bolster working memory task performance, it may help curb mind wandering and should, therefore, be further investigated for its use in academic contexts.
Highlights
In the history of modern psychology, James conveyed the insight that it is important to tame a wandering mind
The current study investigated the impact of short-form Mindfulness training (MT) in University student cohorts
Following a 7 week training interval during an academic semester at a US University, students engaging in MT showed greater sustained attention task performance and lower self-reported mind wandering during task completion than control students who received no training
Summary
In the history of modern psychology, James conveyed the insight that it is important to tame a wandering mind. Mind wandering is defined as task unrelated thought that occurs when there is a shift away from external stimuli and representations associated with ongoing activities and goals (Barron et al, 2011). Mind wandering can be problematic in academic contexts where success requires sustained attention to course content, as students must integrate information from external sources (e.g., from a lecture, text book, or class discussion) with ongoing internal representations and reactions that may or may not be related to academic learning (i.e., thoughts, memories, and emotions; Smallwood et al, 2007a). Mind wandering has been demonstrated to impair memory for lecture material (Lindquist and McLean, 2011; Farley et al, 2013). Providing an education par excellence may require training students in strategies to help them reduce mind wandering in the service of learning
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