Mindfulness Training Improves Working Memory Capacity and GRE Performance While Reducing Mind Wandering

A 2-week mindfulness-training course reduced distracting thoughts and improved performance on cognitive tasks. In a randomized controlled investigation, participants who completed mindfulness training showed higher GRE reading-comprehension scores and greater working memory capacity compared to controls, while also reporting fewer distracting thoughts during these tasks. The improvements were driven by reduced mind wandering, particularly among those initially prone to distraction. The findings indicate that cultivating mindfulness can enhance cognitive function broadly.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Given that the ability to attend to a task without distraction underlies performance in a wide variety of contexts, training one's ability to stay on task should result in a similarly broad enhancement of performance. In a randomized controlled investigation, we examined whether a 2-week mindfulness-training course would decrease mind wandering and improve cognitive performance. Mindfulness training improved both GRE reading-comprehension scores and working memory capacity while simultaneously reducing the occurrence of distracting thoughts during completion of the GRE and the measure of working memory. Improvements in performance following mindfulness training were mediated by reduced mind wandering among participants who were prone to distraction at pretesting. Our results suggest that cultivating mindfulness is an effective and efficient technique for improving cognitive function, with wide-reaching consequences.