Understanding the First Person Experience of Walking Mindfulness Meditation Facilitated by EEG Modulated Interactive Soundscape

Walking meditation, where the rhythm of walking anchors attention, was examined with and without an interactive soundscape driven by one practitioner's brainwaves. Six workshops with novice and advanced practitioners included guided walking meditation, body scan, writing, drawing, and group interviews. Themes of shifting state, attention, self-regulation, and immersion emerged. Practitioners used sound to synchronize walking and breathing. The work provides a method and description of first-person experience to inform design of interactive technologies for walking meditation.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Walking meditation is a form of mindfulness training, where the act of walking provides a rhythmic meter for attentional focus. Whilst digital technologies to support sitting meditation and walking practices exist, less explored is the first person in-the-moment experience of technology-mediated walking meditation. We present a study of group walking meditation, with and without an interactive rhythmic soundscape modulated by one practitioner’s brainwave data. Six workshops were conducted with novice and advanced practitioners, involving a guided walking meditation with body scan, writing and drawing exercises and a group interview. The analysis yielded themes of shifting state, attention, self-regulation strategy, and immersion and reflection, and insights into how practitioners use sound to synchronize both walking and breathing. We contribute a method for eliciting, and a novel description of, the first person experience of walking meditation, as resources for the design of interactive technologies to support mindfulness practices of walking meditation.