The Effects of Collectivism or Individualism on Future Construals Following a Brief Mindfulness-Based Intervention
James Charles Pearman
Otago University Research Archive September 9, 2026 DOI: 10.82348/our-archive.00358 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Experimental study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Participants in two experimental studies, including NZ European and non-NZ European participants |
| Measures | Behavioural Identification Form (BIF) |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Key findings | Brief mindfulness inductions showed no main effect on construal level in either study. In Study 1, cultural identity moderated the effect: NZ European participants reported more concrete construals after focused attention than open monitoring, with the reverse for non-NZ European participants. Study 2 found self-control predicted lower BIF scores but did not mediate the induction effect. The authors argue these results support a "mindfulness toolbox" model of process-specific tools contingent on moderators. |
Abstract
Mindfulness practice and metacognition each support adaptive cognition by cultivating present-moment, nonjudgmental awareness and the capacity to monitor and regulate one’s mental processes. The present thesis tested whether two brief and common mindfulness inductions (focused attention and open monitoring) differentially influenced construal level (concrete vs. abstract) as measured on the Behavioural Identification Form (BIF). In two experimental studies, participants listened to scripted audio inductions of mindfulness, after which construal level and (in Study 2) cultural identity dimensions were measured. There was no main effect of mindfulness induction on construal level in either study. However, in Study 1, mindfulness interacted with cultural identity (NZ-European versus non-NZ European), such that NZ European participants reported relatively more concrete construals following the focused-attention induction than the open monitoring induction, but the reverse was true for non-NZ European participants. Study 2 found self-control predicted lower BIF but did not mediate the induction effect. Results are interpreted as supporting a “mindfulness toolbox” model in which brief mindfulness manipulations are treated as process-specific tools whose cognitive outcomes are contingent on individual and contextual moderators.
Comparable studies
Other experimental studies on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| The benefits of being present: Mindfulness and its role in psychological well-being. Cancer patients (clinical intervention study) | 2003 | Mixed methods: scale development, correlational, quasi-experimental, laboratory, experience-sampling, and clinical intervention study | |
| Loving-kindness meditation increases social connectedness. | 2008 | Controlled laboratory experiment | |
| Mindfulness and mind-wandering: Finding convergence through opposing constructs. | 2012 | Two studies: correlational study and experimental study | |
| Mental Training Enhances Attentional Stability: Neural and Behavioral Evidence | 2009 | Experimental study | |
| Mindfulness meditation and substance use in an incarcerated population. Incarcerated population | 2006 | Quasi-experimental with treatment-as-usual control condition |