The Impact of Mindfulness Meditation on the Wandering Mind: a Systematic Review.

A systematic review of 24 studies examined how Mindfulness Meditation (MM) affects mind wandering (MW). Most pre-post intervention studies showed that at least two weeks of MM practice reduced MW and limited its negative effects on cognitive tasks. Cross-sectional studies found that expert meditators reported less MW and showed decreased Default Mode Network activity during meditation and at rest compared to non-meditators. The reviewed studies varied widely in design, outcome measures, and interventions. The authors call for further research to replicate findings and explore how meditation influences the qualitative characteristics of MW.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Through the practice of Mindfulness Meditation (MM), meditators become familiar with the observation of ongoing spontaneous thoughts, while maintaining an attitude of openness and equanimity. The aim of this systematic review is to present a synthesis of available findings of the short and long-term effects of MM on mind wandering (MW). We included studies that considered both first-person and behavioral/physiological measures of MW. The search resulted in 2035 papers, 24 of which were eligible. Reviewed studies revealed a high heterogeneity in designs, outcome measures and interventions. Most of the pre-post intervention studies showed that a protracted practice of MM (at least 2 weeks) reduced MW, limiting its negative effects on different cognitive tasks. Cross-sectional studies highlighted differences between expert meditators and naïve individuals: meditators self-reported less MW and showed decreased Default Mode Network activity, during meditation and resting-state. Further studies are needed to replicate available findings and to more deeply explore how MW is influenced by meditation, also considering its qualitative characteristics that remain largely unexplored.