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Combining Behavior and EEG to Study the Effects of Mindfulness Meditation on Episodic Memory

Erika Nyhus, William A. Engel, Tomas Donatelli Pitfield, Isabella M.W. Vakkur

Journal of Visualized Experiments May 11, 2020 DOI: 10.3791/61247-v (opens in new tab)

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Study at a glance

AI-extracted from the abstract
Characteristics Controlled trial (mindfulness meditation group vs. waitlist control) Peer reviewed
Intervention Mindfulness meditation training
Duration 4 weeks of training; measures taken before and after training
Measures Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ), source recognition task, EEG theta power
Topics Meditation
Citations 17
Key findings Following four weeks of mindfulness meditation training, participants showed increased mindfulness, improved source recognition memory performance, and greater EEG theta power in right frontal and left parietal channels compared with a waitlist control group. Increases in mindfulness correlated with increases in right frontal theta power, suggesting a link between meditation-related changes in mindfulness and neural activity during episodic memory retrieval.

Abstract

Although there has been recent interest in how mindfulness meditation can affect episodic memory as well as brain structure and function, no study has examined the behavioral and neural effects of mindfulness meditation on episodic memory. Here we present a protocol that combines mindfulness meditation training, an episodic memory task, and EEG to examine how mindfulness meditation changes behavioral performance and the neural correlates of episodic memory. Subjects in a mindfulness meditation experimental group were compared to a waitlist control group. Subjects in the mindfulness meditation experimental group spent four weeks training and practicing mindfulness meditation. Mindfulness was measured before and after training using the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ). Episodic memory was measured before and after training using a source recognition task. During the retrieval phase of the source recognition task, EEG was recorded. The results showed that mindfulness, source recognition behavioral performance, and EEG theta power in right frontal and left parietal channels increased following mindfulness meditation training. In addition, increases in mindfulness correlated with increases in theta power in right frontal channels. Therefore, results obtained from combining mindfulness meditation training, an episodic memory task, and EEG reveal the behavioral and neural effects of mindfulness meditation on episodic memory.

Comparable studies

Other non-randomized and open-label trials on meditation, most cited first.

Study Year Design Participants
Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction in Relation to Quality of Life, Mood, Symptoms of Stress, and Immune Parameters in Breast and Prostate Cancer Outpatients Early-stage breast and prostate cancer patients 2003 Pre-post intervention study n = 59
Exploring self‐compassion and empathy in the context of mindfulness‐based stress reduction (MBSR) Community sample 2010 Pre-post intervention study
Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Lowers Psychological Distress In Medical Students Second-year medical students 2003 Prospective nonrandomized cohort-controlled study n = 302
Intensive meditation training, immune cell telomerase activity, and psychological mediators. Retreat participants and matched controls 2011 Controlled trial with wait-list control group n = 60
The Effectiveness of Mindfulness Training for Children with ADHD and Mindful Parenting for their Parents Children aged 8-12 with ADHD and their parents 2011 Within-group waitlist controlled trial n = 22

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