Practice Is Protective: Mindfulness Training Promotes Cognitive Resilience in High-Stress Cohorts. Born: Sigismund Schlomo Freud Freiberg in Mähren, Moravia, Austrian Empire (now Příbor, Czech Republic) Died: 23 September 1939 (aged 83). Background The current combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan have involved U.S. military personnel in major ground combat and hazardous security duty. Studies are. The Relationship Between Working Memory Capacity and Executive Functioning: Evidence for a Common Executive Attention Construct. ![]() Practice Is Protective: Mindfulness Training Promotes Cognitive Resilience in High- Stress Cohorts. In the current study, we investigated the impact of MT on attentional performance lapses and self- reported mind wandering in two military cohorts as they prepared for deployment. Objective and subjective performance measures on the SART were indexed before (T1) and after (T2) a 9 to 1. MT promotes cognitive resilience and functional stability over the high- stress predeployment interval. We found that objective SART performance measures (A′ and target accuracy) were greater in the high practice group vs. MC groups at T2. In addition, we found that ICV (i. RT variability) was significantly or marginally lower in the high practice group vs. Subjective performance measures indicated that the high practice group reported more awareness of where their attention was directed during the SART at T2 relative to the other two groups, who did not differ from each other. An analysis of change- over- time within each group revealed that SART measures degraded in the MC and low practice groups from T1 to T2 but remained stable over time in the high practice group. Importantly, when MT practice time was indexed as a continuous variable in the MT group, more out- of- class time spent engaging in mindfulness exercises over the training interval corresponded with greater functional stability in objective and subjective SART metrics. Thus, together these results suggest that engagement in the MMFT course and sufficient MT practice outside of class may have protected against attentional decline over the high- demand predeployment interval. We consider protection against attentional decline associated with self- reported mind wandering as a salutary effect of MT. Yet, recently, there has been a call for more nuanced consideration of mind wandering, which acknowledges that mind wandering may have benefits in addition to the well- studied costs (e. Smallwood and Andrews- Hanna 2. In fact, conscious internal reflection (i. Mc. Millan et al. Key considerations in determining if and when mind wandering is costly or beneficial are tied to the contents of mind wandering (Andrews- Hanna et al. Levinson et al. 2. The findings regarding attention and mind wandering herein are limited to participants’ performance on the SART. To more fully determine if and when mind wandering has salutary vs. MT influences the content and frequency of mind wandering that may occur during a variety of other experimental tasks, free rest, and ongoing daily activities. Nonetheless, the current results are promising regarding MT- related protection against degradation in SART measures over time. Prior research on the SART confirms that it is a stable task over repeated testing sessions when offered during typical civilian life (Jha et al. Robertson et al. 1. As such, the pattern of decline over time in the MC and low practice groups should not be attributed to task instability. One interpretation of the present results is that having to endure the high- demand predeployment interval may lead to diminished attention to the task at hand. It is well- established that the predeployment interval comprises intensive and persistent demands, requiring individuals to acquire new skills, complete training exercises designed to induce high levels of stress, and prepare for the risks and hardships associated with deployment (see Stanley 2. Not only are substantial attentional resources required for success during this challenging period, but these resources may be overexerted, leading to increases in attentional failures. Accordingly, declines in performance in the MC and low practice groups in the present study are in line with a resource depletion framework of attention where performing intensive, demanding tasks will deplete cognitive resources over time leading to diminished performance on subsequent demanding tasks (see Persson et al. Unlike the MC and low practice groups, the high practice group did not demonstrate a pattern of depletion over time, and as described in Table 2, greater practice time in the MT group corresponded with protection from decline in A′ scores over time. While these practice- related results are novel and further our understanding of the putative role MT exercises may play in promoting cognitive resilience, we acknowledge that the present study is limited in multiple ways. Many of these limitations result from the constraints of conducting research in a predeployment military context. The MT group was invited to participate, as a convenience sample, after the leadership responded with interest to recruitment efforts. While the MC group was from the same unit, and was matched on its projected mission during deployment, there was no random assignment or blinding of conditions to units or individuals, and the MC group was recruited after the MT group. Further, there were baseline group differences in SART variables at T1. Based on prior published reports in these participants (Jha et al. Stanley et al. 2. MT and MC groups did not differ at T1 on the following measures: the Five- Factor Mindfulness Questionnaire (5. FMQ: Baer et al. 2. Perceived Stress Scale (PSS: Cohen et al. Operation Span Task: Unsworth et al. Positive and Negative Affect Scale (PANAS: Watson et al. As such, the cognitive and affective factors examined in these participants failed to reveal groupwise differences which could help inform why baseline group differences in SART performance may have been observed. However, inter- individual baseline differences in SART performance measures, similar to those observed herein, have been previously documented in healthy, young adults (Manly et al. Mc. Vay et al. 2. Other limitations of the present study are that it did not include an active comparison group, and the size of the sample was small. Moreover, while 3. MT participants, the degree and manner of homework completion were ultimately determined by the individuals rather than the researchers. We acknowledge that our study design does not allow us to make strong causal inferences about the influence of MT practice (vs. SART measures. Nonetheless, a recent study conducted in predeployment U. S. Army Soldiers does provide corroborative evidence regarding the importance of MT practice on attention (Jha et al. Two short- form variants of MMFT were offered to two cohorts, one emphasizing in- class MT practice instruction and discussion and the other emphasizing didactic content. After the training interval, SART performance measures were better for the practice- vs. Participants in the practice- focused MMFT variant also reported spending a greater (marginally significant) amount of time than didactic- focused participants engaging in MT practice outside of class. As such, it was unclear if the practice- focused group’s better SART performance was due to greater in- class practice time or cumulative practice time (Jha et al. Nonetheless, when the level of in- class emphasis on mindfulness practice (vs. Jha et al. 2. 01. We argue that MT- related SART performance benefits are due to strengthening of attention via its repeated engagement during MT practice exercises. We conceptualized MT practice time as a metric to approximate MT- related attentional engagement, such that greater time promotes greater strengthening of attention. Yet, we acknowledge that the variable of practice time may be confounded by other factors that may partially or fully explain the patterns in the SART measures we report. One such factor is mental effort exerted during task performance, which may have varied between individuals and could have systematically varied with the amount of MT practice in which individuals chose to engage. Specifically, those who spent more time and effort engaging in MT exercises may have also applied more effort during the SART at T2. The Case for Using Personally Relevant and Emotionally Stimulating Gambling Messages as a Gambling Harm- Minimisation Strategy. While strong empirical evidence exists demonstrating the effectiveness of tobacco control media campaigns in encouraging smoking cessation (Sims et al. Sims et al. (2. 01. UK of smoking behaviour following both positive and negative emotive messages in televised advertisement campaigns. Positive emotive messages focused on the reasons for quitting and how to quit, whereas almost all of the negative emotive messages focussed on the health risk of smoking. Both positive and negative emotive messages delivered via televised advertising were associated with a reduction in smoking prevalence when compared to the effects of emotionally neutral messages, whereas only negative emotive ads were associated with a reduction in cigarette consumption among smokers, controlling for extraneous variables such as price of cigarettes. However, the use of negative emotion- eliciting message campaigns amongst youth populations show that fear appeals are ineffective in youth alcohol, tobacco, and other drug (ATOD) prevention (Prevention First 2. Excessive use of fear in emotive messaging may cause an individual to ignore or not believe the message as they may feel negative consequences will happen regardless of what action they take (Prevention First 2. Even worse, fear may invoke the opposite behaviour intended by the message if the individual likes taking risks (e. Steele and Southwick 1. Zimmerman 1. 99. 7), which may be especially true among youth populations given the prematurity in brain regions associated with impulse control (Blakemore and Choudhury 2. Prevention First (2. ATOD use, low- fear messages from credible sources that are based on facts, tied to the present, and appeal to more positive emotions should be used instead. While both fear- based messages and fact- based drug education can increase knowledge and negative attitudes toward substance use, these approaches have not been shown to reduce or prevent substance use behaviour in youth populations. Similarly, Agrawal and Duhachek (2. In relation to ‘irresponsible’ drinking, Agrawal and Duhachek’s (2. This results in leaving individuals more free to do what the message warned against than if it had never been received. In particular, shame- laden consumers exposed to messages which asserted that drinking might lead to additional shame- inducing situations, believed that their own drinking would not lead to those consequences, with similar findings for emotions of guilt. Conversely, messages that elicited no threat to the self but asked participants to think about the behaviour of others had the intended effects. One of the proposed mechanisms for this effect offered by Agrawal and Duhachek (2. As an alternative, they suggested that following a warning, messages should end on a more positive note, relieving the negative emotion and defensiveness towards the message. This is empirically supported in a Spanish study conducted by Carrera et al. They found that among a student sample, a mixed message containing both negative and positive emotional content generates lower post- message discomfort than an exclusively negative message. In addition, participants experiencing the mixed emotion message reported a lower probability of performing the risk behaviour (binge drinking) in the future. The mixed message also resulted in participants being more motivated to control the danger associated with binge drinking, and showed a greater response efficacy in the mixed message condition compared to the negative only condition. However, messages eliciting negative emotion have been shown to enhance responsible drinking efficacy. Hendriks et al. (2. The study found that fear was most induced by ‘disgusting’ messages, and in turn, fear induced a negative conversational valence that elicited healthier binge drinking attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioural control, intentions, and behaviour. Consequently, it was suggested that health campaign messages should aim to stimulate healthy conversational valence. Duhachek et al. (2. They argued that guilt is an emotion associated with a problem- focus that emphasizes the regaining of benefits, and that shame is an emotion associated with an emotion- focus that emphasizes consequences to be avoided. Duhachek et al. (2. In line with their predictions, results of their study showed that guilt appeals are more persuasive when combined with messages framing benefits to be gained by drinking responsibly, whereas shame appeals are more persuasive when combined with messages framing consequences to be avoided. They show that guilt/benefit framed messages and shame/consequence framed messages reduce intentions to binge drink, as well as reduce the willingness to view alcohol- related advertising. The authors claimed that these messages are effective because they facilitate the use of coping strategies associated with guilt and shame.
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