Effect of brief mindfulness meditation on expressive writing

A brief mindfulness meditation before expressive writing enhances the physical and psychological benefits of the writing exercise. College students who practiced mindfulness meditation prior to writing reported superior outcomes compared with a group that did a listening activity, and they also showed increased state mindfulness. The study also confirmed that individuals with higher baseline trait mindfulness responded better to expressive writing than those with lower trait mindfulness. The authors propose that mechanisms common to both practices—disinhibition, exposure to negative affect, and shifts in cognitive coping—may underlie the combined intervention's effectiveness.

Study at a glance

Abstract

An impressive body of research indicates that expressive writing, which encourages participants to let go and explore their deepest thoughts and feelings while writing continuously, produces physical and psychological benefits.Mindfulness is defined as paying attention on pupose, in the present moment and nonjudgmentally, to the unfolding of experience moment by moment.Combining the concepts of expressive writing and mindfulness together, one could argue that an individual who is mindful is more capable of paying attention to the writing process in the present moment as well as to the experience of the actual event and to the internal and external events that followed.In addition, the literature suggests that mechanisms underlying the effectiveness of expressive writing, such as disinhibition, exposure to negative affect, and shifts in cognitive coping, are potential mechanisms that may also underlie the effectiveness of mindfulness interventions.The current study aimed to examine the effects of a mindfulnessenhanced expressive writing intervention among college students by introducing a brief mindfulness meditation prior to an expressive writing exercise.Results showed that individuals who practiced a brief mindfulness meditation training prior to writing experienced superior physical and psychological benefits relative to those in a comparison group who engaged in a listening activity, and they also reported an increase in mindfulness measured as a state.The study also replicated findings that individuals with higher baseline trait mindfulness scores responeded better to expressive writing relative to those with lower baseline trait mindfulness scores.iii Table of ContentsList of Tables.iv