Cognition

Improve Depression and Cognitive Decline with Yoga

psyjdc Leave a comment

Improve Depression and Cognitive Decline with Yoga

 

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

 

“For years, we’ve been told to keep our minds sharp by doing crosswords and playing Sudoku. But yoga and meditation are more effective than memory exercises for combating the mental decline that often precedes Alzheimer’s. People who practised yoga regularly were also less likely to be depressed and anxious, and were better able to cope with stress. Regular practice could be a simple, safe and low-cost solution to improving brain fitness and ward off ageing.” Madlen Davies

 

The aging process involves a systematic progressive decline in every system in the body, the brain included. This includes our mental abilities which decline with age including impairments in memory, attention, and problem solving ability. It is inevitable and cannot be avoided. But there are more serious declines.

 

Dementia is a progressive loss of mental function produced by degenerative diseases of the brain. Dementia patients require caregiving particularly in the later stages of the disease. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common type of dementia and accounts for 50 to 70 percent of dementia cases. Other types of dementia include vascular dementia, mixed dementia, dementia with Lewy bodies and frontotemporal dementia. Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is an intermediate stage between the expected cognitive decline of normal aging and the more-serious decline of dementia. It can involve problems with memory, language, thinking and judgment that are greater than normal age-related changes.

 

There is some hope for age related cognitive decline, however, as there is evidence that they can be slowed. There are some indications that physical and mental exercise can reduce the rate of cognitive decline and lower the chances of dementia. For example, contemplative practices such as meditation, yoga, and tai chi or qigong have all been shown to be beneficial in slowing or delaying physical and mental decline with aging. Mindfulness practices have been shown to improve cognitive processes while gentle mindful exercises such as Tai Chi and Qigong have been shown to slow age related cognitive decline.

 

These age-related declines in mental ability are associated with mood disturbance, particularly depression. So, depression is a potentially modifiable risk factor for cognitive decline in aging. In today’s Research News article “The Roles of Exercise and Yoga in Ameliorating Depression as a Risk Factor for Cognitive Decline.” See summary below: Mathersul and Rosenbaum review the published research literature on the effectiveness of yoga and exercise to relieve depression and restrain cognitive decline.

 

They find that the published literature demonstrates that exercise, including aerobic exercise and strength training improve cognitive ability even in younger individuals and also relieves depression. In addition, the published literature demonstrates that yoga practice is also effective in reducing depression and also restraining cognitive decline. The hormonal system particularly the hypothalamic-pituitary adrenal axis that produces cortisol and sympathetic nervous system, involved in the stress response, may be the common intermediaries as both are associated with cognitive decline and depressions and both are reduced by both yoga and exercise. But, this speculation has yet to be definitively tested.

 

These findings are interesting but are correlational and do not demonstrate causal links between yoga and exercise effects on depression and, in turn, age related cognitive decline. It remains to future research to clarify this issue. Regardless, it is clear that both exercise and yoga are effective to reducing depression and cognitive decline in aging, making them excellent practices for healthy aging.

 

So, improve depression and cognitive decline with yoga.

 

“This ancient Indian practice of exercise, breathing, and meditation has been around for about 5,000 years, and now researchers are finding out why millions of Americans practice yoga to ease depression, anxiety, and stress. In fact, the American Yoga Association says just a few minutes of yoga three times every day can balance your body and mind and get your depression on the run.” – Chris Lliades

 

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

 

This and other Contemplative Studies posts are also available on Google+ https://plus.google.com/106784388191201299496/posts and on Twitter @MindfulResearch

 

Study Summary

Danielle C. Mathersul and Simon Rosenbaum, “The Roles of Exercise and Yoga in Ameliorating Depression as a Risk Factor for Cognitive Decline,” Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, vol. 2016, Article ID 4612953, 9 pages, 2016. doi:10.1155/2016/4612953

 

Abstract

Currently, there are no effective pharmaceutical treatments to reduce cognitive decline or prevent dementia. At the same time, the global population is aging, and rates of dementia and mild cognitive impairment (MCI) are on the rise. As such, there is an increasing interest in complementary and alternative interventions to treat or reduce the risk of cognitive decline. Depression is one potentially modifiable risk factor for cognitive decline and dementia. Notably, exercise and yoga are two interventions known to both reduce symptoms of depression and improve cognitive function. The current review discusses the efficacy of exercise and yoga to ameliorate depression and thereby reduce the risk of cognitive decline and potentially prevent dementia. Potential mechanisms of change, treatment implications, and future directions are discussed.

Improve the Symptoms of Stress with Mindfulness

psyjdc Leave a comment

Image may contain: 7 people, people smiling, people standing and outdoor

Improve the Symptoms of Stress with Mindfulness

 

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

 

“Through mindfulness, individuals start to see their thoughts as less powerful. These distorted thoughts – such as “I always make mistakes” or “I’m a horrible person” – start to hold less weight. We ‘experience’ thoughts and other sensations, but we aren’t carried away by them. We just watch them come and go.” – William Marchand

 

Stress is universal. We are constantly under some form of stress. In fact, if we don’t have enough stress, we seek out more. Moderate stress can be a good thing promoting growth and flourishing. But, it must be moderate or what is called the optimum level of stress. Too little or too much stress can be damaging. Unfortunately for many of us living in a competitive, multitasking, modern environment stress is all too often higher than desirable. In addition, many of the normal mechanisms for dealing with stress have been eliminated. The business of modern life removes opportunities for rest, extra sleep, and leisure activities. Instead people are working extra hours and limiting or passing up entirely vacations to stay competitive. Persistently high levels of stress are damaging and can directly produce disease or debilitation increasing susceptibility to other diseases. Indeed, chronic stress has been associated with depression, anxiety, burnout, suicide attempts, poor immune functioning, and cardiovascular disorders.

 

It is beyond the ability of the individual to change the environment to reduce stress, so it is important that methods be found to reduce the individual’s responses to stress; to make the individual more resilient when high levels of stress occur. Contemplative practices including meditation practice have been shown to reduce the psychological and physiological responses to stress. Because of their ability to relieve stress, mindfulness trainings are increasingly being practiced by individuals and are even being encouraged in some workplaces. But, some other treatments such as exercise or biofeedback may also be effective.

 

In today’s Research News article “A RCT Comparing Daily Mindfulness Meditations, Biofeedback Exercises, and Daily Physical Exercise on Attention Control, Executive Functioning, Mindful Awareness, Self-Compassion, and Worrying in Stressed Young Adults.” See:

https://www.facebook.com/ContemplativeStudiesCenter/photos/a.628903887133541.1073741828.627681673922429/1466297833394138/?type=3&theater

or see summary below or view the full text of the study at:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5010624/

de Bruin and colleagues recruited young adults, aged 18-40 years, who were high in perceived stress and randomly assigned them to either a daily mindfulness meditations, daily heart rate variability biofeedback, or daily physical exercise groups. The participants were provided a 2-hour orientation instruction and then practiced daily over 5 weeks for 10 to 20 minutes per day on an individualized practice plan. They were measured before and after treatment and 6-weeks later for attention control, executive function, mindfulness, self-compassion, and worry.

 

They found that all three interventions produced significant improvement from the pretest to posttest in attention control, executive function, mindfulness, self-compassion, and worry. These effects remained significant at the 6-week follow-up, suggesting lasting effects. All practices had moderate to large effects sizes. Surprisingly there were no significant differences between the three different practices as all produced significant improvements in the measures.

 

It is interesting that all three practices produced significant increases in mindfulness. This would be expected for the mindfulness meditation group but is somewhat surprising for the heart rate variability biofeedback and physical exercise groups. This fact may explain why all of the practices were beneficial. It suggests that improved mindfulness is responsible for the improvements in attention control, executive function, self-compassion, and worry. This seems reasonable, give that mindfulness training has been shown previously to improve attention control, executive function, self-compassion, and worry. Hence it appears that there are a number of practices that can improve the psychological conditions of stressed young adults and that they act by increasing mindfulness.

 

So, improve the symptoms of stress with mindfulness.

 

“mindfulness meditation promotes metacognitive awareness, decreases rumination via disengagement from perseverative cognitive activities and enhances attentional capacities through gains in working memory. These cognitive gains, in turn, contribute to effective emotion-regulation strategies.” – Daphne Davis

 

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

 

This and other Contemplative Studies posts are also available on Google+ https://plus.google.com/106784388191201299496/posts

 

Study Summary

De Bruin, E. I., van der Zwan, J. E., & Bögels, S. M. (2016). A RCT Comparing Daily Mindfulness Meditations, Biofeedback Exercises, and Daily Physical Exercise on Attention Control, Executive Functioning, Mindful Awareness, Self-Compassion, and Worrying in Stressed Young Adults. Mindfulness, 7(5), 1182–1192. http://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-016-0561-5

 

Abstract

Our Western society is characterized by multitasking, competition, and constant time pressure. Negative effects of stress for the individual (anxiety, depression, somatic complaints) and for organizations and society (costs due to work absence) are very high. Thus, time-efficient self-help interventions to address these issues are necessary. This study assessed the effects of daily mindfulness meditations (MM) versus daily heart rate variability biofeedback (HRV-BF) and daily physical exercise (PE) on attention control, executive functioning, mindful awareness, self-compassion, and worrying. Young adults (n = 75, age range 18 to 40) with elevated stress levels were randomized to MM, HRV-BF, or PE, and measurements were taken at pre-test, post-test, and follow-up. Interventions in all three groups were self-guided and lasted for 5 weeks. Generalized estimating equation analyses showed that overall, all three interventions were effective and did not differ from each other. However, practice time differed between groups, with participants in the PE group practicing much more than participants in the other two groups. Therefore, additional analyses were carried out in two subsamples. The optimal dose sample included only those participants who practiced for at least 70 % of the total prescribed time. In the equal dose sample, home practice intensity was equal for all three groups. Again, the effects of the three interventions did not differ. In conclusion, MM, HRV-BF, and PE are all effective self-help methods to improve attention control, executive functioning, mindful awareness, self-compassion, and worrying, and mindfulness meditation was not found to be more effective than HRV-biofeedback or physical exercise for these cognitive processes.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5010624/

 

Think About It: Mindfulness May Improve Cognitive Functions

psyjdc Leave a comment

 

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

 

“Mindfulness helps us focus: Studies suggest that mindfulness helps us tune out distractions and improves our memory and attention skills.” – Leah Weiss

 

Mindfulness is defined by Jon Kabat-Zinn as “the awareness that emerges through paying attention on purpose, in the present moment, and nonjudgmentally to the unfolding of experience moment by moment.” In its most basic form, mindfulness training is attention training. As a result, it’s been assumed that mindfulness training would improve attentional ability. It was also assumed that the ability to focus and attend without mind wandering would improve higher level thinking, cognition, sometimes known as executive function.

 

Although there have been a number of studies to investigate the relationship of mindfulness to attentional ability and executive function, they have varied widely in the form of mindfulness training and the methods to measure attention and executive function. In today’s Research News article “Cognitive effects of MBSR/MBCT: A systematic review of neuropsychological outcomes.” See:

https://www.facebook.com/ContemplativeStudiesCenter/photos/a.628903887133541.1073741828.627681673922429/1343930858964170/?type=3&theater

or see summary below. Lao and colleagues review the published research literature on the effects of mindfulness training on attention and executive function. They restricted the reviewed studies to only those that studied adults, who were randomly assigned to either an 8 to 12-week mindfulness training or a control condition, that employed either Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) as the mindfulness training methods, and that measured attention and/or executive function with an objective measure. The literature search produced 18 articles that met all of the criteria. Eleven of the studies used healthy adults while the other 7 were either actively depressed or in remission patients.

 

They found that the studies that investigated attentional or executive attentional abilities only one had a statistically significant improvement in attention from mindfulness training, although all the rest showed mean attentional improvement that was not statistically significant. This contrasted to previous reviews that found significant effects of mindfulness training on attentional ability. But, many of the studies included in these other reviews were not randomized but compared long-term meditators to novices. This suggests that improvement in attentional ability may not result from short-term practice, but require long-term mindfulness training to develop.

 

Similarly, they found that there were mixed findings for higher level thinking, executive functions, with some studies finding significant results while others finding positive changes on the average, but that were not statistically significant. There were, however, significant effects on the awareness of awareness, meta awareness, and the ability to alter thinking, cognitive flexibility. These are significant as they suggest that even though short-term practice was involved, the highest levels of cognitive processing are improved with mindfulness training. Finally, they found that mindfulness training produced statistically significant improvements is memory function, particularly short-term, working, memory.

 

This literature summary, however, was not a meta-analysis where the results of multiple studies are summed and statistically evaluated. Rather Lao and colleagues simply reported on the statistical significance of individual studies. This process lacks the statistical power of a meta-analysis. Since many of the findings were in the direction of improvement, a meta-analysis may well have shown significant overall effects for mindfulness training where few or none were present in the individual studies. Hence, the literature summary was able to detect several significant cognitive and memory effects of mindfulness training, but the jury is still out on its ability to affect other executive function and attentional abilities.

 

So, think about it: mindfulness may improve cognitive functions.

 

“Cultivating mindfulness is not an easy task, but with persistence and practice we can make significant changes in the way we use our attention. We can improve concentration, our intimate relationships, our spiritual practice, and our overall mental health. What’s at stake is nothing less than our experience of life itself.” – ToDo Institute

 

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

 

This and other Contemplative Studies posts are also available on Google+ https://plus.google.com/106784388191201299496/posts

 

Study Summary

Lao SA, Kissane D, Meadows G. Cognitive effects of MBSR/MBCT: A systematic review of neuropsychological outcomes. Conscious Cogn. Volume 45, October 2016, Pages 109–123, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.concog.2016.08.017

 

Highlights

  • Review of evidence for whether MBSR and MBCT improve cognitive performance.
  • Attention and executive functions were not improved through MBSR/MBCT.
  • Preliminary evidence for working memory, meta-awareness and cognitive flexibility improvements.

Abstract

Mindfulness is theorised to improve attention regulation and other cognitive processes. This systematic review examines whether 8-week standardised and manualised mindfulness training programs such as Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) and Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) enhances attention, memory and executive function abilities measured by objective neuropsychological tests. Seven databases were searched resulting in 18 studies meeting inclusion criteria for review. Overall studies did not support attention or executive function improvements. We found preliminary evidence for improvements in working memory and autobiographical memory as well as cognitive flexibility and meta-awareness. Short-term mindfulness meditation training did not enhance theorised attentional pathways. Results call into question the theoretical underpinnings of mindfulness, further highlighting the need for a comprehensive theoretical framework.

Improve the Brain’s Capacity for Creative Problem Solving with Meditation

psyjdc Leave a comment

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

 

“meditation is the best approach we know of allowing the mind to relax and have the ability to make a surge of insight wisdom. One does not power through an “Aha! Moment” with strain and determination. Thinking and more thinking does not generate that moment of brilliance that we are pursuing. The quick flash of energy is actually the subconscious mind surging a new perspective to the conscious mind. The conscious mind is more likely to recognize the gift of brilliance that the subconscious mind has sent it, if the conscious mind is in a calm state.” – Lindsay Leimbach

 

The problem solving ability of humans has been a key to their dominance of their environment. So, it’s important that we understand it and discover how to train it and maximize it. Problem solving most frequently involves logic and reasoning, sometimes along with mathematics. In this case focused attention is the key. The mind wandering off topic interferes with the concentration required for obtaining the solution. But, when a solution does not occur and the individual fails to solve the problem a completely different process transpires producing insight. If logic and reason fail, then fanciful and out-of-the box thinking may be needed. In this case mind wandering, taking the thought process away from the failed logical strategy, is superior, often producing a solution in a flash, an “aha” moment. In this case focused attention prevents the individual from seeing an unusual or creative solution. While the mind wandering off topic increases the discursive thinking that is required for obtaining the insightful solution.

 

Mindfulness is the ability to focus on what is transpiring in the present moment. It involves a greater emphasis on attention to the immediate stimulus environment. Mindful people generally have better attentional abilities and have fewer intrusive thoughts and less mind wandering. As a result, mindfulness has been shown to be associated with differences in thought processes. Most of the time these differences are associated with beneficial results, but sometimes they can lead to negative outcomes including a greater tendency to have false memories. So mindfulness should improve problem solving involving logic, reason, and focused attention, while it should interfere with insightful, creative problem solving.

 

These two forms of problem solving are, in general, associated with different neural systems. Focused attention involves a number of brain structures centered in the frontal lobes. Creative, discursive thinking involves a system of structures known as the Default Mode Network (DMN) involving the parietal lobe, cingulate cortex, and insula. One way to investigate the influence of mindfulness on creative problem solving is to look at the activity of these two systems during problem solving and insight before and after mindfulness training.

 

In today’s Research News article “Short-term meditation modulates brain activity of insight evoked with solution cue.” See:

https://www.facebook.com/ContemplativeStudiesCenter/photos/a.628903887133541.1073741828.627681673922429/1341430935880829/?type=3&theater

or see summary below or view the full text of the study at:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4994853/

Ding and colleagues randomly assigned participants to receive either meditation training, integrative body–mind training (IBMT), or simple relaxation for 10 days, 30 minutes per day. Before and after the training they had the participants perform a task that requires creative thought known as the Remote Associations Test, which also frequently produces “aha’ moments when the solution is seen. The task was performed while the participants’ neural activity was measured in a functional Magnetic Resonance (f-MRI) scanner.

 

They found that after the meditation training the participants were significantly better at the Remote Associations Test. They then looked at the brain activity when the solution was not found and they were presented with the solution, producing an “aha’ moment. They found that after meditation training the brain activity of the two groups differed in this “aha’ moment. There was significantly greater activation found in the right cingulate gyrus, insula, putamen, as well as in the right inferior frontal gyrus, and the bilateral middle frontal gyrus, inferior parietal lobule and superior temporal gyrus. Some of these structures are involved in focused logical reasoning while others are part of the mind wandering system (DMN).

 

The “aha’ moment produced in this study involves logic in analyzing the possibilities and seeing that the proposed solution actually solves the problem and also the discursive, creative though to see how the unusual (remote) solution is appropriate. These findings suggest that mindfulness training alters the nervous system making it able to both utilize the focused logical systems and the mind wandering, discursive systems better to solve this kind of problem. Hence, it appears that meditation training enhances both logical and insightful problem solving by enhancing the activity of their underlying neural systems.

 

So, improve the brain’s capacity for creative problem solving with meditation.

 

“If, individually and collectively, we can be more mindful of the way we employ problem-solving strategies, we could release a great deal of human potential from the damaging effects of stress.” – Matthew Kalman Mezey

 

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

 

This and other Contemplative Studies posts are also available on Google+ https://plus.google.com/106784388191201299496/posts

 

Study Summary

Ding, X., Tang, Y.-Y., Cao, C., Deng, Y., Wang, Y., Xin, X., & Posner, M. I. (2015). Short-term meditation modulates brain activity of insight evoked with solution cue. Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience, 10(1), 43–49. http://doi.org/10.1093/scan/nsu032

 

Abstract

Meditation has been shown to improve creativity in some situation. However, little is known about the brain systems underling insight into a problem when the person fails to solve the problem. Here, we examined the neural correlation using Chinese Remote Association Test, as a measure of creativity. We provide a solution following the failure of the participant to provide one. We examine how meditation in comparison with relaxation influences the reaction of the participant to a correct solution. The event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging showed greater activity, mainly distributed in the right cingulate gyrus (CG), insula, putamen, inferior frontal gyrus (IFG), and the bilateral middle frontal gyrus (MFG), the inferior parietal lobule (IPL) and the superior temporal gyrus (STG). This pattern of activation was greater following 5 h of meditation training than the same amount of relaxation. Based on prior research, we speculate on the function of this pattern of brain activity: (i) CG may be involved in detecting conflict and breaking mental set, (ii) MFG/IFG may play an important role in restructuring of the problem representation, (iii) insula, IPL and STG may be associated with error detection, problem understanding or general attentive control and (iv) putamen may be activated by ‘Aha’ feeling.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4994853/

 

Improve Schoolchildren’s Thinking with Mindfulness

psyjdc Leave a comment

mindfulness-school2-wimmer

 

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

 

“It may not be the typical way to start an English class, but Gonzalez’s students were familiar with these five-minute mindfulness exercises—from counting breaths and focusing on the sensations of breathing, to visualizing thoughts and feelings—that he uses to help train their attention, quiet their thoughts, and regulate their emotions.” – Lauren Cassani Davis

 

Childhood is a time of rapid learning and brain development. A key for the child is the development of the ability to focus, attentional ability. Children, in general, have relatively brief attention spans. In the modern world they are bombarded with a myriad of distractions, many of which require only brief moments of attention. For children to benefit maximally from learning opportunities, particularly in school, being able to focus attention is imperative. Mindfulness training in school, at all levels has been shown to have very positive effects. These include academic, cognitive, psychological, and social domains. Mindfulness practices, since they involve practicing attentional focus, have been shown, not surprisingly, to improve attention.

 

Since attentional ability is so crucial to children’s development, it is important to better understand what promotes its development and what methods can be implemented with children to improve it. In today’s Research News article “Cognitive Effects of Mindfulness Training: Results of a Pilot Study Based on a Theory Driven Approach.” See:

https://www.facebook.com/ContemplativeStudiesCenter/photos/a.628903887133541.1073741828.627681673922429/1318387964851793/?type=3&theater

or see summary below or view the full text of the study at:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4940413/

Wimmer and colleagues randomly assigned German fifth grade school children to receive either a Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) program that was adapted for children, a concentration training program, or no treatment. MBSR is a complex mindfulness development program that contains practices in meditation, body scan, and yoga. Training occurred over 25 weeks with twice weekly sessions of one hour each. The children were assessed prior to and after treatment with measures of sustained attention, cognitive flexibility, cognitive inhibition, and data-driven information processing.

 

They found that the MBSR group showed less of a decrease in sustained attention (vigilance task) than the no treatment group over the 25 weeks. All three groups improved in cognitive flexibility, demonstrating improved ability to look at things in different ways. MBSR training produced a significant improvement in cognitive inhibition, the ability to screen out certain stimuli in order to better process others, and in data-driven information processing. Hence, MBSR training produced significant benefits for the children improving their attention and ability to screen out distractors. This latter finding is important as children at this age, in general, have great difficulty in restraining themselves from responding to irrelevant stimuli in the environment.

 

These preliminary results suggest that mindfulness training may be of benefit to children in developing attentional abilities that are crucial to school performance. Since the MBSR program is complex, it cannot be ascertained whether training in meditation, body scan, or yoga or some combination of these practices was the crucial component that led to improved attentional abilities. This was a pilot study. It clearly suggests that further, more intensive, study is warranted which may begin to clarify what are the crucial aspects of the training for the development of attention in children.

 

So, improve schoolchildren’s thinking with mindfulness.

 

“Growing up as a child in East Harlem, where the poverty rate is extremely high, the asthma rate is extremely high and obesity rate is high — in addition to the complications our families deal with as a result of living in poverty — having a time to center yourself is important to allow our children to have access to learning.” – Eve Colavito

 

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

 

This and other Contemplative Studies posts are also available on Google+ https://plus.google.com/106784388191201299496/posts

 

Study Summary

Wimmer, L., Bellingrath, S., & von Stockhausen, L. (2016). Cognitive Effects of Mindfulness Training: Results of a Pilot Study Based on a Theory Driven Approach. Frontiers in Psychology, 7, 1037. http://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.01037

 

Abstract

The present paper reports a pilot study which tested cognitive effects of mindfulness practice in a theory-driven approach. Thirty-four fifth graders received either a mindfulness training which was based on the mindfulness-based stress reduction approach (experimental group), a concentration training (active control group), or no treatment (passive control group). Based on the operational definition of mindfulness by Bishop et al. (2004), effects on sustained attention, cognitive flexibility, cognitive inhibition, and data-driven as opposed to schema-based information processing were predicted. These abilities were assessed in a pre-post design by means of a vigilance test, a reversible figures test, the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test, a Stroop test, a visual search task, and a recognition task of prototypical faces. Results suggest that the mindfulness training specifically improved cognitive inhibition and data-driven information processing.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4940413/

 

Develop Wisdom with Meditation

psyjdc Leave a comment

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

 

“What’s encouraging about meditation is that even if we shut down, we can no longer shut down in ignorance. We see very clearly that we’re closing off. That in itself begins to illuminate the darkness of ignorance.” – Pema Chodron

 

Wisdom is considered to be an extremely desirable characteristic in humans. People who are thought of as wise are revered. People throughout their lives strive for wisdom and hope that they will develop wisdom. Wisdom is thought to endow the individual with the ability to successfully engage with life and conquer its challenges. To some extent, wisdom is considered the pinnacle of human cognitive development. At the same time, most people would be hard pressed to state exactly what it is. This may be why many find it elusive, as it is difficult to find something when it’s not known what is being sought.

 

In today’s Research News article “The Relationship between Mental and Somatic Practices and Wisdom”

https://www.facebook.com/ContemplativeStudiesCenter/photos/a.628903887133541.1073741828.627681673922429/1199463786744212/?type=3&theater

http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0149369

Williams and colleagues describe wisdom as “a unified construct composed of interrelated cognitive, reflective, and affective characteristics. In this model, wisdom is characterized as a deep and accurate perception of reality, in which insight into human nature and a diminished self-centeredness are acquired through life experience and practice in perspective taking.”

 

This description of wisdom indicates that there are a number of different components and capacities that go into wisdom. Firstly, it states that it is acquired through life experiences. As such, it involves learning ability. Next it states that it is a “deep and accurate perception of reality.” This involves cognitive capacities, thinking, and the ability to see things as they are. It involves “diminished self-centeredness” which involves the development of compassion and empathy for others. Finally, it “insight into human nature.” This involves reflective ability to look inside oneself and objectively observe and determine what are the true characteristics being human.

 

It would appear to be a daunting challenge, then to acquire wisdom. But, there may be help. Contemplative practices have been shown to improve virtually all of the capacities that lead to wisdom. In particular, contemplative practices improve learning ability, cognition, compassion and empathy, self-awareness, and regulate emotions. Hence, it would seem that engaging in contemplative practices would develop wisdom. This is exactly what the Buddha promised about 2500 year ago, that meditation and contemplation would led to wisdom.

 

Williams and colleagues investigated the relationship between a number of practices, including meditation, on the development of wisdom. They recruited participants who were meditators, who engaged in somatic practices to develop mindful coordinated movements, and who practiced classical ballet. They recruited and measured participants on-line. They measured wisdom with a survey called the “Three-Dimensional Wisdom Scale.” It is a measure of cognitive, reflective, and affective dimensions of wisdom, with questions such as “A person either knows the answer to a question or he/she doesn’t;” “I try to look at everybody’s side of a disagreement before I make a decision;” and “It’s not really my problem if others are in trouble and need help.”

 

They found that the meditators had significantly higher wisdom scores than any of the other groups. The years of practice of meditation was found to be significantly, positively related to wisdom and that this relationship was mediated by lower anxiety levels. In other words, the more years of meditation practice, the lower the levels of anxiety, and as a result, the higher the levels of wisdom. These results clearly suggest that the effects of meditation on emotion regulation are key to the development of wisdom.

 

These results are important and interesting. It makes sense that the ability to regulate emotions would be important for developing wisdom. In order to learn from life experiences, it is important that emotional reactions are not allowed to overwhelm the individual or to cloud the cognitive processing of the experience’s lessons and meaning. By being able to fully experience the emotions, the meditator can learn about human nature, but, being able to react to the emotions adaptively and effectively, the meditator can keep the emotional reaction from interfering with an objective appraisal of the experience. This would allow the development of wisdom.

 

So, develop wisdom with meditation.

 

“Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom.” ― Aristotle

 

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

 

Improve Physical and Cognitive Function with Tai Chi

psyjdc 19 Comments

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

 

“Because Tai Chi may impact cognitive function via a diverse and potentially synergistic set of mechanistic pathways, it is plausible that it may offer benefits superior to interventions that target only single pathways (e.g., aerobic training or stress reduction alone)” – Peter Wayne

 

The process of aging affects every aspect of the physical and cognitive domains. Every system in the body deteriorates including motor function with a decline in strength, flexibility, and balance. Impaired balance is a particular problem as it can lead to falls. In the U.S. one third of people over 65 fall each year and 2.5 million are treated in emergency rooms for injuries produced by falls. About 1% of falls result in deaths making it the leading cause of death due to injury among the elderly. It is obviously important to investigate methods to improve balance and decrease the number of fall in the elderly.

 

Perhaps more troubling than the physical decline is the mental deterioration that occurs with aging. This is called age related cognitive decline and includes decreases in memory, attention, and problem solving ability. This occurs to everyone as they age, but to varying degrees. Some deteriorate into a dementia, while others maintain high levels of cognitive capacity into very advanced ages. It is estimated that around 30% of the elderly show significant age related cognitive decline. But, remember that this also means that 70% of the elderly retain reasonable levels of cognitive ability.

 

It is, therefore, important to investigate methods to slow the mental decline during aging. Some promising methods are contemplative practices which have been shown to restrain age related declines. One particularly promising method is the ancient eastern practice of Tai Chi. It is particularly promising due to the fact that it is both a physical and a mental practice. Indeed, tai chi practice has been shown to slow cognitive decline in aging.

 

In today’s Research News article “Effects of Tai Chi and Western Exercise on Physical and Cognitive Functioning in Healthy Community-Dwelling Older Adults”

https://www.facebook.com/ContemplativeStudiesCenter/photos/a.628903887133541.1073741828.627681673922429/1177689028921688/?type=3&theater

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4699673/

Taylor-Piliae and colleagues randomly assigned sedentary adults over 60 years of age to either a tai chi practice, a physical exercise program, or attention (healthy aging) training. Training occurred twice a week in 90-minute classes and three times per week in home practices. They measured the physical and mental capabilities of the participants at 6 and 12 months of training. They found that both the tai chi and exercise groups improved in both flexibility and balance in comparison to the control condition. At 6 months the tai chi group was superior with balance while the exercise group was superior in flexibility, but at 12 months the two groups were equivalently superior to the control group in both flexibility and balance. In contrast, only the tai chi group demonstrated improved levels of cognitive function including memory and semantic fluency at both 6 and 12 months.

 

These results suggest that both tai chi and exercise are effective in slowing the physical decline with aging but tai chi has the added benefit of also slowing the cognitive decline. Since tai chi is safe, with no known adverse effects, and a gentle practice it is very appropriate for an aging population. Also, since it can be taught and practiced in groups and easily maintained at home, it is a very inexpensive intervention. This makes it almost ideal for aging individuals on fixed incomes.

 

The results suggest that tai chi practice may be helpful in preventing falls as a result of improvement in balance and flexibility and slow the mental decline with aging. This indicates that tai chi practice should be recommended for elderly individuals to help maintain their physical and mental abilities. So, improve physical and cognitive function with tai chi.

 

“There is growing evidence that Tai Chi can significantly reduce the risk of cognitive impairment and improve cognitive function.” – Exercise Medicine Australia

 

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

 

Think More Critically with Mindfulness

psyjdc Leave a comment

 

“Mindfulness slows things down so we can be more deliberate in our critical thinking process.” – Lalith Gunaratne

 

“Critical thinking is the objective analysis and evaluation of an issue in order to form a judgment.”

 

Currently, there is a major deficit in critical thinking skills being taught in schools.  Only around 5% of U.S. high school seniors demonstrated the ability to not only comprehend text, but also to analyze and evaluate it. This underscores the need to find ways to improve critical thinking.

Mindfulness, the ability to pay attention in the present moment without judgment, affects our thought processes in mostly positive ways. It has been shown to improve the ability to control our thinking, termed executive function and the extremely important ability to think critically (see http://contemplative-studies.org/wp/index.php/category/research-news/cognition/). Because of this, mindfulness training is being applied in schools to help facilitate learning (see http://contemplative-studies.org/wp/index.php/category/research-news/school/).

 

Because it is such a critical consequence of mindfulness, it is important to further investigate the effects of mindfulness on critical thinking. In today’s Research News article “Does Mindfulness Enhance Critical Thinking? Evidence for the Mediating Effects of Executive Functioning in the Relationship between Mindfulness and Critical Thinking”

https://www.facebook.com/ContemplativeStudiesCenter/photos/a.628903887133541.1073741828.627681673922429/1175808369109754/?type=3&theater

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4717844/

Noone and colleagues study the relationship between mindfulness and executive function to explore whether mindfulness may produce its effects on critical thinking as a result of its effects on executive function. They measured mindfulness, critical thinking, and executive function in college students.

 

They found that the levels of mindfulness of the students were not directly related to critical thinking performance. On the other hand, they found strong relationships between executive function components and critical thinking. In particular, the updating component of executive function was strongly related to critical thinking and the Inhibition component was moderately related. Updating involves the active revision and monitoring of thinking and the continuous updating of working memory. In other words, critical thinking requires the ability to constantly revise thought processes as ideas are analyzed. Inhibition involves the suppression of intrusive thoughts or responses in order to keep attention on the problem at hand. In other words, critical thinking requires the ability to control the interference from irrelevant thinking and thereby concentrating on the problem. Interestingly, mindfulness appeared to have a small relationship with critical thinking. The observing component of mindfulness was positively related to the inhibition component of executive function which is directly facilitative of critical thinking.

 

At least in the current analysis, mindfulness appears to be indirectly and only mildly related to critical thinking through its observing facet. It appears to do so by improving attention which screens out thoughts that are not pertinent to working on the problem. It allows for better focus and therefore better critical thinking.

 

So, think more critically with mindfulness.

 

“Mindfulness practice is the kale to my high-stimulus lifestyle, but man cannot live by kale alone. I’m balancing my diet with the whole three course meal. Mindfulness, Mind Yoga and Introspective Intelligence are all practices to have on our plates.” – Jeremy Sherman

 

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

 

Help Kids Emotionally and Cognitively with Mindfulness

psyjdc 2 Comments

“Mindfulness within schools makes a lot of sense. There is a growing body of evidence that supports the claims that mindfulness improves working memory, attention, academic skills, social skills, emotional balance and self-esteem.” – Joseph Pound

 

Childhood is a miraculous period during which the child is dynamically absorbing information from every aspect of its environment. This occurs almost without any intervention from the adults as the child appears to be programmed to learn. It is here that behaviors, knowledge, skills, and attitudes are developed that shape the individual. But, what is absorbed depends on the environment. If it is replete with speech, the child will learn speech, if it is replete with trauma, the child will learn fear, if it is replete with academic skills the child will learn these, and if it is replete with interactions with others the child will learn social skills. It is up to adults to structure the environment to be conducive to learning what is most important.

 

Elementary school is a wonderful time to structure the environment to develop knowledge, attitudes, and skills. This has been known for centuries. But, which ones are most important to the development of a high functioning adult? Elementary school environments stress academic skills. This is appropriate and necessary. But at times, particularly in the United States, the emphasis on academic skills, especially factual learning, is so great that other important learning is neglected. There is often little effort to develop the so called softer skills; emotional, mindfulness, creative, meta-cognitive, psychological, and social skills. This is unfortunate as these skills are important unto themselves’ and also turn out to be very important in developing academic skills. In addition, it’s been shown that these softer skills in childhood predict health, financial stability, and educational attainment into adulthood.

 

One method that has recently been employed to help develop these softer skills in school children is mindfulness training. This has occurred for good reason as mindfulness training has been shown to improve academic performance, social skills, emotions, and meta-cognitive skills in grammar school children (see http://contemplative-studies.org/wp/index.php/2015/08/08/building-a-better-adult-with-elementary-school-mindfulness-training/) and even in preschool children (see http://contemplative-studies.org/wp/index.php/2015/07/17/building-a-better-adult-preschool-mindfulness-training/). This is a potentially very important development and as such deserves far greater research scrutiny.

 

In today’s Research News article “Mindfulness Training in Primary Schools Decreases Negative Affect and Increases Meta-Cognition in Children”

https://www.facebook.com/ContemplativeStudiesCenter/photos/a.628903887133541.1073741828.627681673922429/1172028366154421/?type=3&theater

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4709470/

Vickery and Dorjee delivered twelve ½-hour mindfulness lessons over approximately 3-weeks to 7-9-year old primary school children in the classroom in addition to the typical curriculum. A second group of children were provided the typical curriculum without the additional mindfulness training. Children were measured with objective and observational measures before and after training and 3-months later. They found that positive changes in mindfulness were associated with positive increases in emotional awareness in the mindfulness trained children. They also found that at follow-up the mindfulness training produced a significant increase in teacher rated meta-cognitive skills and also a significant decrease in negative emotions.

 

These are potentially important findings. Meta-cognitive skills include working memory, planning/organizing, organization of materials, initiating and monitoring activities. These are important skills that are generally predictive of academic performance and success later in life. Mindfulness, paying attention to the content of the present moment, may be a prerequisite for meta-cognition. One cannot initiate, plan, organize, remember, or monitor activities without paying attention to them as they are occurring. So, mindfulness skills may be seen as foundational for cognitive skills. It is exciting that this appears to be effective in young 7-9-year old children and makes a strong argument for the implementation of mindfulness programs in grammar schools.

 

The decrease in negative emotions is also important. They can lead to anxiety and depression. It has been shown that mindfulness training in adults and adolescents is effective for the reduction of anxiety and depression. It is exciting to observe that mindfulness training may have similar effects in 7-9-year old children. This suggests that the mindfulness training may develop resilience and psychological well-being in the children. It is possible that mindfulness training may be an effective early intervention for the prevention of later psychological problems and act to promote the development of psychological health.

 

It should be noted that Vickery and Dorjee did not find significant changes in measures of mindfulness, positive emotions, emotional awareness and expressive reluctance, and positive well-being. It is possible that a the total of 6-hurs of training is simply insufficient to impact these domains. Further research is needed to clarify this issue. Regardless, the positive findings that were reported are exciting and potentially important and support the further development and research on the use of mindfulness training in grammar school curricula.

 

So, help kids emotionally and cognitively with mindfulness.

 

“People are stepping back on that full focus on reading and math scores and are looking more holistically at all the skills that really matter. Social-emotional learning is not only crucial to academic success, but also career success and lifelong being.” – Sara Bartolino Krachman

 

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

 

Improve High Level Thinking with Mindfulness

psyjdc 13 Comments

 

“Take the attitude of a student, never be too big to ask questions, never know too much to learn something new.” – Og Mandino

 

In the modern world education is a key for success. Where a high school education was sufficient in previous generations, a college degree is now required to succeed in the new knowledge based economies. There is a lot of pressure on students to excel so that they can be admitted to the best universities and there is a lot of pressure on university students to excel so that they can get the best jobs after graduation. As a result, parents and students are constantly looking for ways to improve student performance in school.

 

The primary tactic has been to pressure the student and clear away routine tasks and chores so that the student can focus on their studies. But, this might in fact be counterproductive as the increased pressure can actually lead to stress and anxiety which can impede performance. A better tactic may be the development of mindfulness skills with contemplative practices. These practices and high levels of mindfulness have been shown to be helpful in coping with the school environment and for the performance of both students and teachers (see http://contemplative-studies.org/wp/index.php/category/research-news/school/). So, perhaps, mindfulness training may provide the needed edge in school.

 

In today’s Research News article “Effects of a Mindfulness Meditation Course on Learning and Cognitive Performance among University Students in Taiwan”

https://www.facebook.com/ContemplativeStudiesCenter/photos/a.628903887133541.1073741828.627681673922429/1151653591525232/?type=3&theater

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4657094/

Ching and colleagues took advantage of the natural experiment provided in a private university which required a semester long mindfulness course as a core course for all students. The course taught meditation, body scan, and everyday mindfulness skills. They compared students who completed the course in the fall semester to those who were scheduled to take the course in the spring semester. They measured the students with the College Learning Effectiveness Inventory (CLEI) which measures psychosocial factors including thoughts, feelings, or behaviors related to academic outcomes and also measured performance on the cognitive tasks of vigilance, choice reaction times, spatial working memory, and memory scanning.

 

The study demonstrated that the mindfulness training produced significantly higher scores on the CLEI suggesting improved attitudes and behaviors impacting learning and academic performance. In addition, the mindfulness training produced improved performance on the cognitive tasks, including increased accuracy in the vigilance, choice reaction time, and spatial working memory tasks. These results suggest that mindfulness training can improve cognitive performance in college students and improve their psychosocial attitudes toward and adjustment to college life. Although actual grade performance was not investigated, the improved skills would predict better academic performance.

 

There are a number of known effects of mindfulness practice that could be responsible for the improved cognitive and psychosocial skills in the college students. Mindfulness training has been shown to directly affect cognitive skills (see http://contemplative-studies.org/wp/index.php/category/research-news/cognition/), social skills (see http://contemplative-studies.org/wp/index.php/category/research-news/social-behavior/), and psychological well-being (see   http://contemplative-studies.org/wp/index.php/category/research-news/well-being/). In addition, mindfulness training is known to reduce the physiological and psychological responses to stress (see http://contemplative-studies.org/wp/index.php/category/research-news/stress/) which may reduce the anxiety produced by the pressures of college. Finally, mindfulness training is known to improve sleep (see http://contemplative-studies.org/wp/index.php/category/research-news/sleep/) which is known to be a problem for college students. So, it appears clear that mindfulness training has many desired effects that promote school performance and thus mindfulness training should be considered for incorporation in school curricula.

 

So, improve high level thinking with mindfulness.

 

“Education is that whole system of human training within and without the school house walls, which molds and develops men.” – W. E. B. Du Bois
CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies