The impact of mindfulness training on theta and beta power in youth with ADHD: an EEG analysis and methodological considerations
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Quasi-experimental study |
|---|---|
| Population | Youth with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder |
| Intervention | Integra Mindfulness Martial Arts |
| Measures | theta power, beta power, theta/beta ratio (TBR) |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Key findings | The treatment group showed a decrease in theta/beta ratio, an index of attentional ability, during an active attention task, while controls did not; no such change appeared during a rest task. The authors argue this supports mindfulness training as a treatment option for ADHD and the use of active attention tasks to detect treatment gains. |
Abstract
Attention-deficit/ hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by inattention and/or hyperactivity and impulsivity. The most common management tool, stimulant medication, shows limited efficacy in youth due to side effects, stigma, and noncompliance. The current quasi-experimental study examines the influence of a behavioural, mindfulness-based treatment program for youth, Integra Mindfulness Martial Arts, on theta power, beta power, and theta/ beta ratio (TBR), neural indices reflecting attentional ability. Additionally, the current study compared the use of rest versus active attention tasks in order to determine which task type best displayed attention-related treatment gains. Improvements in attentional ability, indexed by a decrease in TBR, were found for the treatment group, but not controls, during an active attention task and not during a rest task. These findings support mindfulness training as a treatment option for ADHD, and support the use of active versus passive attention tasks when examining treatment-related gains. Keywords: attention-deficit/ hyperactivity disorder, mindfulness, youth, EEG, theta/beta ratio
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 |
Citations in the library
Cites 7
- How Does Mindfulness Meditation Work? Proposing Mechanisms of Action From a Conceptual and Neural Perspective Perspectives on Psychological Science October 14, 2011
- Mindfulness meditation training alters cortical representations of interoceptive attention Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience June 11, 2012
- The Effectiveness of Mindfulness Training for Children with ADHD and Mindful Parenting for their Parents Journal of Child and Family Studies February 1, 2011
- The Effectiveness of Mindfulness-Based Therapies for ADHD: A Meta-Analytic Review Journal of Attention Disorders March 1, 2020
- Mindfulness training for adolescents: A neurodevelopmental perspective on investigating modifications in attention and emotion regulation using event-related brain potentials. Cognitive, Affective, & Behavioral Neuroscience September 1, 2015
and 2 more in the library