Word retrieval improves following a mindful breathing exercise but is unrelated to dispositional mindfulness

Abstract

ABSTRACT Mindfulness can reduce anxiety and improve attentional control, so we tested for relationships between mindfulness and performance on word retrieval tasks. In Study 1, college students experienced a 10-min mindful breathing exercise or control condition, and participants in the mindful breathing condition correctly named more pictures than participants in the control condition. Participants also completed a self-report measure of dispositional mindfulness, but scores were unrelated to picture naming performance. In Study 2, online participants completed the mindfulness measure and attempted to produce target words that fit definitions and reported their tip-of-the-tongue (TOT) states. Neither TOT rate nor correct responding correlated with mindfulness scores, replicating Study 1 results with a larger, more varied sample. Results indicate that a mindful breathing exercise can facilitate word retrieval but that self-reported dispositional mindfulness does not positively affect word retrieval.