Positive Effects of Mindfulness-Based Training on Energy Maintenance and the EEG Correlates of Sustained Attention in a Cohort of Nurses.
Kian F Wong, James Teng, Michael W.L. Chee, Kinjal Doshi, Julian Lim
Frontiers in Human Neuroscience 2018 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2018.00080 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Preliminary longitudinal study (no control condition) Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 36 |
| Population | Nurses (mean age 30.3, SD 8.52; 2 male) |
| Intervention | Mindfulness-based training (MBT) |
| Duration | 8-week intervention |
| Measures | psychomotor vigilance task (PVT), electroencephalography (EEG), P300, alpha-band event-related desynchronization, self-report on Likert-type scales |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Keywords | P300 Event-related desynchronization Mindfulness-based training Nurses Psychomotor vigilance test Sustained attention |
| Key findings | PVT performance worsened over the 8-week period, but this decline was mitigated by good MBT attendance, and regular attendees reported less subjective energy depletion. Changes in alpha power during meditation correlated with attendance, and P300 and alpha-band event-related desynchronization during PVT paralleled the behavioral shifts. The authors suggest MBT attendance may help attenuate declines in sustained attention in nursing, but note the absence of a control condition. |
Abstract
Mindfulness based training (MBT) is becoming increasingly popular as a means to improve general wellbeing through developing enhanced control over metacognitive processes. In this preliminary study, we tested a cohort of 36 nurses (mean age = 30.3, SD = 8.52; 2 male) who participated in an 8-week MBT intervention to examine the improvements in sustained attention and its energetic costs that may result from MBT. Changes in sustained attention were measured using the psychomotor vigilance task (PVT) and electroencephalography (EEG) was collected both during PVT performance, and during a brief period of meditation. As there was substantial variability in training attendance, this variable was used a covariate in all analyses. Following the MBT program, we observed changes in alpha power across all scalp regions during meditation that were correlated with attendance. Similarly, PVT performance worsened over the 8-week period, but that this decline was mitigated by good attendance on the MBT program. The subjective energy depletion due to PVT performance (measured using self-report on Likert-type scales) was also less in regular attendees. Finally, changes in known EEG markers of attention during PVT performance (P300 and alpha-band event-related desynchronization) paralleled these behavioral shifts. Taken together, our data suggest that sustained attention and its associated costs may be negatively affected over time in the nursing profession, but that regular attendance of MBT may help to attenuate these effects. However, as this study contained no control condition, we cannot rule out that other factors (e.g., motivation, placebo effects) may also account for our findings.
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
Cited by 9
- Effects of a mindfulness-based interventions on stress, burnout in nurses: a systematic review and meta-analysis Frontiers in Psychiatry August 3, 2023
- Mindfulness meditation alters neural activity underpinning working memory during tactile distraction bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) October 2, 2019
- Dynamic functional connectivity signatures of focused attention on the breath in adolescents. Cerebral Cortex February 5, 2025
- Mindfulness Meditation Interventions for Long COVID: Biobehavioral Gene Expression and Neuroimmune Functioning. Neuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment November 8, 2022
- Trait mindful awareness predicts inter-brain coupling but not individual brain responses during naturalistic face-to-face interactions. Frontiers in Psychology 2022
and 4 more in the library
Cites 20
- Short-term meditation training improves attention and self-regulation Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences October 11, 2007
- Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction for Health Care Professionals: Results From a Randomized Trial. International Journal of Stress Management May 1, 2005
- Mindfulness Training Improves Working Memory Capacity and GRE Performance While Reducing Mind Wandering Psychological Science March 28, 2013
- Mental Training Affects Distribution of Limited Brain Resources PLoS Biology May 4, 2007
- A systematic review of neurobiological and clinical features of mindfulness meditations Psychological Medicine November 27, 2009
and 15 more in the library