Dissecting De-automatization

University of Utah53 enrolled

Overview

The proposed study will assess the effects of mindfulness meditation training on an eye blink conditioning (EBC) task in a sample of novice meditators. This methodology will allow investigation of whether mindfulness interrupts classical conditioning through the process of de-automatization. Implicit learning rates, as reflective of unconscious habit formation and measured by the frequency of conditioned responses during the EBC, will be a main outcome of interest. The proposed study will also assess the effects of mindfulness meditation training on an emotion regulation (ER) task, with a specific focus on reappraisal of negative images and savoring of positive images.

Study Type

INTERVENTIONAL

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

BASIC_SCIENCE

Masking

SINGLE

Enrollment

Conditions

Mindfulness

Interventions

Mindfulness Meditation TrainingBEHAVIORAL

A researcher will guide participants through 5 mindfulness meditations, each lasting 11 minutes in length.

Active ListeningBEHAVIORAL

A researcher will read participants 5 selections from The Natural History of Selborne, each lasting 11 minutes in length.

Eligibility

Sex: ALLMin age: 18 YearsMax age: 60 YearsHealthy volunteers:

Medical Language ↔ Plain English

Inclusion Criteria: 1. Age 18-60, 2. willingness to participate in study interventions and assessments. Exclusion Criteria: 1. Prior experience with Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction, Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy, or Mindfulness-Based Relapse Prevention, or a history of meditation practice, 2. Learning disability, significant memory problems or significant attentional disruptions as determined by self-report, 3. History of head injury resulting in loss of consciousness.

Locations (1)

University of Utah

Salt Lake City, Utah, United States

Outcomes

Primary Outcomes

Conditioned Eyeblink Frequency

Between group differences in the frequency of conditioned eyeblinks over the six reinforcement blocks.

Time frame: 9 minutes

Secondary Outcomes

Positive Emotion Regulation Task

Between group differences in affective change occasioned by savoring positive images will be measured by comparing increases in self-reported positive affect (5-point Likert scale) from pre- to post- positive image, viewing block.

Time frame: 5 minutes

Negative Emotion Regulation Task

Between group differences in affective change occasioned by positively reappraising negative images will be measured by comparing increases in self-reported negative affect (5-point Likert scale) from pre- to post- negative image, viewing block.

Time frame: 5 minutes

Self-Transcendence (NADA-State)

Between group differences in the degree to which mindfulness training alters participants' sense of self as measured by the nondaul awareness dimension assessment's (NADA) state form.

Time frame: 2 minutes

Data from ClinicalTrials.gov

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