The Costs and Benefits of Mindfulness and Reappraisal in Daily Life
Mario Wenzel, Elisabeth S. Blanke, Zarah Rowland, Annette Brose
Affective Science February 20, 2023 DOI: 10.1007/s42761-022-00178-7 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Experience sampling study re-analysis Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Adults in daily life (two experience sampling samples of 125 and 179 participants) |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Citations | 13 |
| Key points | Endorsing reappraisal and mindful attention was significantly associated with increases in positive affect, whereas endorsing mindful acceptance was significantly associated with decreases in negative affect. Reappraisal led to more depletion and was selected less often than mindfulness in daily life, suggesting its spontaneous use may be more cognitively costly. |
Abstract
Abstract Reappraisal and mindfulness represent two fundamentally different but interconnected ways of dealing with one’s emotions: whereas reappraisal is aimed at changing one’s thoughts and emotions, mindfulness is aimed at not immediately changing, but appreciating them. Despite this difference, prior research has shown that both are beneficial for one’s affective well-being. However, research on the spontaneous use of reappraisal and mindfulness in daily life found that they might be differentially associated with positive and negative affect, with reappraisal and mindful attention being more strongly associated with increased positive affect and mindful acceptance with decreased negative affect. Moreover, the spontaneous use of reappraisal may be less effective than mindfulness in daily life given that it is more cognitively taxing. To compare these possibly different benefits (i.e., change in positive and negative affect) and costs (i.e., feeling depleted), we re-analyzed two experience sampling studies (N = 125 and N = 179). Regarding benefits, endorsing reappraisal and mindful attention was significantly associated with increases in positive affect, whereas endorsing mindful acceptance was significantly associated with decreases in negative affect. Regarding costs, we found that endorsing reappraisal led to more depletion and that reappraisal was selected less often than mindfulness in daily life. Our results demonstrate the importance of assessing not only the different benefits but also the costs of emotion regulation in daily life.
Comparable studies
Other observational and cohort studies on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Using Self-Report Assessment Methods to Explore Facets of Mindfulness Undergraduate students | 2006 | Observational cohort | |
| Effectiveness of a meditation-based stress reduction program in the treatment of anxiety disorders Patients with generalized anxiety disorder or panic disorder with or without agoraphobia | 1992 | Observational cohort | n = 22 |
| Meditation experience is associated with increased cortical thickness Participants with extensive Insight meditation experience and matched controls | 2005 | Observational cohort | n = 20 |
| Meditation experience is associated with differences in default mode network activity and connectivity Experienced meditators and matched meditation-naive controls | 2011 | Observational cohort | |
| Long-term meditators self-induce high-amplitude gamma synchrony during mental practice Long-term Buddhist practitioners and controls | 2004 | Observational cohort |
Citations in the library
Cites 8
- 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
- An eight-week mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) workshop increases regulatory choice flexibility. Emotion June 1, 2019
- Mindfulness and Emotion Regulation: Insights from Neurobiological, Psychological, and Clinical Studies Frontiers in Psychology March 6, 2017
- The effects of computer-based mindfulness training on Self-control and Mindfulness within Ambulatorily assessed network Systems across Health-related domains in a healthy student population (SMASH): study protocol for a randomized controlled trial. Trials December 1, 2016
and 3 more in the library