Dispositional mindfulness and anxiety: how do they relate to aging and word retrieval?
Lori E. James, Tylor Ghaffari, Jessica Baynard-Montague, Jenny A. Lagervall
Neuropsychology, development, and cognition. Section B, Aging, neuropsychology and cognition May 5, 2025 DOI: 10.1080/13825585.2025.2498347 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Cross-sectional study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 207 |
| Population | Adults aged 20–78 |
| Topics | Anxiety Meditation |
| Keywords | Word group theory Cognitive psychology Clinical psychology Linguistics |
| Key findings | Anxiety and mindfulness scores were associated with correct word retrieval only in older adults; no such relationships were found in young or middle-aged participants. |
Abstract
Separate domains of research have previously shown that word retrieval performance is reduced with increased anxiety, and that increased mindfulness is associated with reduced anxiety. Adult aging has been shown to affect word retrieval, mindfulness, and anxiety, but the inter-relationships among these variables have not been previously tested. The present research examined whether individual differences in dispositional mindfulness and anxiety relate to word retrieval performance across adulthood. Participants (N = 207) ages 20–78 completed an online definition-naming task along with several self-report measures related to mindfulness and anxiety. Increased age was positively related to increased production of correct responses and to increased dispositional mindfulness, and negatively related to state anxiety, trait anxiety, and anxiety specifically related to communication. For the entire sample, measures related to mindfulness and anxiety were intercorrelated in the expected ways. We divided participants into groups of young, middle-aged, and older adults, and found that anxiety and mindfulness scores were only associated with correct word retrieval in older adults; there were no relationships in young or middle-aged participants. The primary conclusion is that dispositional mindfulness can attenuate the negative effects of state anxiety on word retrieval performance, but only for older adults. Study results contribute important empirical, theoretical, and practical information regarding mindfulness, anxiety, word retrieval, and aging.
Comparable studies
Other cross-sectional and survey studies on anxiety, most cited first.
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|---|---|---|---|
| Psychological flexibility mediates the relations between acute psychedelic effects and subjective decreases in depression and anxiety. International sample of people who reported having used a psychedelic | 2020 | Cross-sectional survey | n = 985 |
| The Challenging Experience Questionnaire: Characterization of challenging experiences with psilocybin mushrooms Internet survey respondents reporting challenging experiences with psilocybin | 2016 | Questionnaire development and validation | |
| Psychedelics and Mental Health: A Population Study Adult population in the United States | 2013 | Cross-sectional survey | n = 130,152 |
| Ecstasy/MDMA attributed problems reported by novice, moderate and heavy recreational users Ecstasy users who participated in a WWW study of recreational drug use | 2002 | Cross-sectional survey | n = 282 |
| 5-methoxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine (5-MeO-DMT) used in a naturalistic group setting is associated with unintended improvements in depression and anxiety. Adults who used 5-MeO-DMT in a group setting with structured procedures | 2019 | Cross-sectional survey | n = 362 |
Citations in the library
Cites 10
- The benefits of being present: Mindfulness and its role in psychological well-being. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 2003
- Mindfulness: A proposed operational definition. Clinical Psychology Science and Practice 2004
- Assessment of Mindfulness by Self-Report Assessment September 1, 2004
- Brief mindfulness meditation training reduces mind wandering: The critical role of acceptance. Emotion November 7, 2016
- Indices of association between anxiety and mindfulness: a guide for future mindfulness studies. Personality Neuroscience October 24, 2019
and 5 more in the library