Comparing impacts of meditation training in focused attention, open monitoring, and mindfulness‐based cognitive therapy on emotion reactivity and regulation: Neural and subjective evidence from a dismantling study
Kirk Warren Brown, Daniel R. Berry, Kristina Eichel, Polina Beloborodova, Hadley Rahrig, Willoughby B. Britton
Psychophysiology February 19, 2022 DOI: 10.1111/psyp.14024 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Randomized controlled trial Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 89 |
| Population | Community adults with varying levels of depressive symptoms |
| Intervention | MBCT |
| Duration | 8-week training |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Keywords | Mindfulness meditation Reactivity psychology Cognition Psychotherapist Cognitive psychology |
| Citations | 38 |
| Key findings | Focused attention and MBCT trainings, but not open monitoring, produced leftward shifts in frontal alpha asymmetry and improved self-reported emotional reactivity and regulation to negative images. |
Abstract
Commonly conducted mindfulness-based trainings such as Mindfulness-based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and Mindfulness-based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) highlight training in two key forms of meditation: focused attention (FA) and open monitoring (OM). Largely unknown is what each of these mindfulness practices contributes to emotional and other important training outcomes. This dismantling trial compared the effects of structurally equivalent trainings in MBCT, FA, and OM on neural and subjective markers of emotional reactivity and regulation among community adults, with the aim to better understand which forms of training represent active ingredients in mindfulness trainings. Participants with varying levels of depressive symptoms were randomized to one of the three trainings. Before and after each 8-week training, N = 89 participants completed a modified version of the Emotional Reactivity and Regulation Task while electroencephalographic (EEG) and self-reported emotional responses to negative, positive, and neutral photographic images were collected. Examination of EEG-based frontal alpha band asymmetry during passive viewing (reactivity) and active regulation phases of the task showed that FA and MBCT trainings produced significant leftward hemispheric shifts in frontal alpha asymmetry, commonly associated with a shift toward approach-based positive affect. Self-reported emotional responses to negative images corroborated these results, suggesting salutary changes in both emotional reactivity and regulation. OM training had limited beneficial effects, restricted to the subjective outcomes. The findings suggest that MBCT may derive its greatest benefit from training in FA rather than OM. Discussion highlights the potential value of FA training for emotional health.
Comparable studies
Other randomized controlled trials on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alterations in Brain and Immune Function Produced by Mindfulness Meditation Healthy employees in a work environment | 2003 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 41 |
| Prevention of relapse/recurrence in major depression by mindfulness-based cognitive therapy. Recovered recurrently depressed patients | 2000 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 145 |
| Open hearts build lives: Positive emotions, induced through loving-kindness meditation, build consequential personal resources. Working adults | 2008 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 139 |
| Short-term meditation training improves attention and self-regulation Undergraduate Chinese students | 2007 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 40 |
| Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Depression: Replication and Exploration of Differential Relapse Prevention Effects. Recovered recurrently depressed patients | 2004 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 73 |
Citations in the library
Cited by 24
- Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy in Clinical Practice: A Systematic Review of Neurocognitive Outcomes and Applications for Mental Health and Well-Being. Journal of Clinical Medicine March 3, 2025
- Be more mindful: Targeting addictive responses by integrating mindfulness with cognitive bias modification or cue exposure interventions Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews September 25, 2023
- Application of Mindfulness Practices in Work on Stress Reduction during the War Revista de Cercetare si Interventie Sociala June 30, 2023
- The individual and sequential effect of focused attention and open monitoring meditation on mindfulness skills. PLoS One 2025
- Mindfulness-Based Intervention Effects on EEG and Executive Functions: A Systematic Review. Brain Sciences March 20, 2025
and 19 more in the library
Cites 34
- Mindfulness: A proposed operational definition. Clinical Psychology Science and Practice 2004
- How Does Mindfulness Meditation Work? Proposing Mechanisms of Action From a Conceptual and Neural Perspective Perspectives on Psychological Science October 14, 2011
- Alterations in Brain and Immune Function Produced by Mindfulness Meditation Psychosomatic Medicine July 1, 2003
- Prevention of relapse/recurrence in major depression by mindfulness-based cognitive therapy. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology 2000
- Mindfulness Interventions Annual Review of Psychology September 30, 2016
and 29 more in the library