Temporal Changes in the State Effect of Meditation on Response Inhibition Processes
Noriki Yamaya, Shigeyuki Ikeda, Yuichi Hoshino, Hikaru Takeuchi, Ryuta Kawashima
Mindfulness January 10, 2023 DOI: 10.1007/s12671-022-02064-6 (opens in new tab) via OpenAlex
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractA single 10-minute session of focused attention meditation (FAM) temporarily improves response inhibition, as measured by Stroop task performance, but the effect appears 60 minutes after meditation rather than immediately. In a study with 39 healthy participants, those who practiced FAM performed significantly better on the Stroop task 60 minutes later compared to those who did a sham meditation. Greater subjective effort during meditation was associated with better performance at that time point. The findings suggest that FAM may work by preventing cognitive fatigue, with the effect strengthening as effort increases.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Randomized controlled trial Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 39 |
| Population | Healthy participants |
| Interventions | Focused attention meditation Sham meditation |
| Duration | 10-minute meditation, with Stroop task performance measured immediately before and after, and at 20, 40, and 60 minutes after meditation |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Keywords | Stroop effect Session web analytics Analysis of variance Cognition |
| Citations | 2 |
| Key finding | Focused attention meditation improved Stroop task performance 60 minutes after meditation, and higher subjective effort was linked to better performance. |
Abstract
Abstract Objectives A single session of brief focused attention meditation (FAM) has a state effect, which temporarily enhances response inhibition processes. However, previous research has two unanswered questions: (i) How long does the state effect last? (ii) How does effort toward FAM relate to the resulting state effect? Method Thirty-nine healthy participants participated in two sessions: FAM and sham meditation (SHAM). The participants conducted each meditation for 10 min. The state effect on response inhibition processes was observed as Stroop task performance immediately before and after each meditation, and 20, 40, and 60 min after each meditation. In addition, the subjective effort toward meditation was evaluated using a questionnaire immediately after each meditation. Results An analysis of variance revealed a significant interaction between session and time. In the post-hoc analysis, FAM showed significantly better Stroop task performance than the SHAM 60 min after meditation. Furthermore, using correlational analysis, we found that at 60 min, the higher the subjective effort, the better Stroop task performance. Conclusions In contrast to previous findings, the state effect was not found immediately after FAM but instead 60 min after. The results can be partially explained by cognitive fatigue; that is, the FAM may have the state effect of preventing cognitive fatigue. This state effect is greater when the subjective effort is greater.