EEG Neurofeedback During Focused Attention Meditation: Effects on State Mindfulness and Meditation Experiences

Objectives EEG neurofeedback has potential to increase the effectiveness of mobile meditation applications by providing synchronous performance feedback to meditators. This crossover trial aimed to evaluate the effects of auditory EEG neurofeedback on state mindfulness during focused attention medit...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Mindfulness 2021-04, Vol.12 (4), p.841-851
Main Authors: Hunkin, Hugh, King, Daniel L., Zajac, Ian T.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Behavioral Science and Psychology
Child and School Psychology
Cognitive Psychology
Electroencephalography
Feedback
Meditation
Mental health
Mindfulness
Original Paper
Pediatrics
Perceptions
Psychology
Public Health
Social Sciences
Soundscapes
Stress
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Objectives EEG neurofeedback has potential to increase the effectiveness of mobile meditation applications by providing synchronous performance feedback to meditators. This crossover trial aimed to evaluate the effects of auditory EEG neurofeedback on state mindfulness during focused attention meditation—a putative mediator of mental health benefits—relative to no feedback. Methods Adult participants ( N = 68, M age = 22.66, SD age = 7.35) completed a task-based measure of state mindfulness while meditating with and without auditory feedback from a consumer-grade EEG headband. Participants rated subjective meditation experiences in each condition. A subgroup ( n = 29) completed 14 days of home practice with the device and responded to open-ended questions about their experience. Results Auditory feedback was associated with greater state mindfulness ( RR = 1.15, 95% CI [1.00, 1.29]). Device-measured mind wandering was lower when feedback was present ( d = − 0.22 [− 0.07, − 0.37]), but there was a negligible effect on device-measured recoveries from mind wandering episodes ( d = − 0.11 [− 0.30, 0.08]). Feedback was associated with quantitative differences in subjective experiences consistent with heightened arousal. Thematic analysis revealed helpful (active, guiding) and unhelpful (stressful, distracting, incongruent with subjective experience) aspects of feedback. Conclusions EEG neurofeedback appears to increase state mindfulness in adults during a brief meditation. These results support feedback as an effective adjunct to meditation. Psychoeducation regarding feedback and the meditative experience may help to maximise the beneficial effects. Replication of these findings in clinical populations is warranted.
ISSN:1868-8527
1868-8535
DOI:10.1007/s12671-020-01541-0