Mindfulness Based Interventions and the Future of Education

by Cyrus Shaoul, Ph.D.
Senior Academic Researcher & Associate Professor 
Landmark College Institute for Research and Training (LCIRT)

Background

If there is one idea in psychology and education that continues to dominate the conversation among researchers in 2016, it is the relationship between mindfulness practices and learning. Many educators and researchers are intrigued by the promise of Mindfulness Based Interventions (MBIs), but they would like to see more evidence that these interventions are effective in improving learning.

Before we get into the research, I’d like to define MBIs. There are many definitions of what constitutes a mindfulness based intervention, but one of the simplest is given by Tang et al. (2015). They define an MBI as "a form of mental training that aims to improve an individual’s core psychological capacities, such as attentional and emotional self-regulation." (p. 1) and as "non-judgmental attention to experience in the present moment" (p. 2). There are many kinds of practice contained within the scope of MBIs, but the two most commonly used by researchers are Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR, Kabat-Zinn, 2003) and Integrative Body-Mind Training (IBMT, Tang et al, 2007). These MBIs are usually administered by experienced meditators, and the protocols are clearly defined to make the interventions reproducible across laboratories.

Previous Research 

There has been a flurry of experimental studies in the last decade indicating clear psychological effect of MBIs on youth under 18 (Zoogman et al, 2015) and adults (Khoury et al., 2013, 2015), in both clinical and non-clinical populations when dealing with mental health/wellness. Shapiro et al. (2016) state unequivocally that there are benefits for both teachers and students. In terms of EF challenges, Hepark et al. (2015) found in a preliminary study that ADHD symptoms were reduced in a treatment group that received an MBI. In another preliminary study, Spek et al. (2013) found that there was a significant reduction in depression, anxiety, and rumination in an ASD intervention group, as well as increased positive affect. The question I will now address is: Has the same kind of reliable effect been found for MBIs when the research looks at learning and memory?

Let's take a deep dive into one recent study that provides evidence that MBIs can improve learning. This study by Quach and colleagues (Quach, Jastrowski Mano, and Alexander, 2016) entitled "A Randomized Controlled Trial Examining the Effect of Mindfulness Meditation on Working Memory Capacity in Adolescents" appeared in the Journal of Adolescent Health (and is available to the general public for free).

Although previous MBIs have shown improvements in indirect correlates of learning—such as reduced academic anxiety, improved emotional regulation, and reduced depression (Shapiro et al., 2008)—the Quach et al. study found significant changes in working memory capacity (WMC), a core cognitive system supporting learning.

Quach et al. collected data from students at a large public junior high school in southern California. Eighty percent of students at this school were eligible for a free or reduced lunch. They recruited 198 students between the ages of 12 and 17 years. The students were randomly assigned to one of three groups: mindfulness training, hatha yoga training, or a waitlist.

Each of the two treatment groups met eight times (twice a week for four weeks) during PE classes. The waitlist group attended regular PE classes. The type of MBI used was an abbreviated version of the MBSR technique (Kabat-Zinn, 2003). Each session included three parts: breathing techniques, formal meditation, and discussion. There were four topics that were covered: Breathing (Week 1), Being in the Body and Feelings (Week 2), Awareness and Leaves on a Stream (Week 3), and Silent and Loving Kindness (Week 4). Participants also received a CD of meditation audio recordings that they could take home and practice with. The students were encouraged to practice meditation daily for 15 to 30 minutes and to record details of their practice in home practice logs. The hatha yoga group had a very similar intervention, with the only difference being that instead of meditating, the students assumed the yoga poses and tried doing yoga at home with a provided DVD. The main outcome of interest was WMC. Would the MBI and the yoga have different effects on WMC of these adolescents?

To measure WMC pre- and post-intervention, the authors used an instrument called the Automated Operation Span Task (OSPAN). This task involved remembering sequences of letters that were presented one by one interleaved with math problems. They found that the mindfulness meditation group reported significant pre/post improvements in WMC, whereas participants in the hatha yoga and waitlist control groups did not. This shows that doing something relaxing that is different from PE (like hatha yoga) is not enough to change WMC. Only when the students were trained in how to be aware of the present moment in the MBI did their WMC reliably increase. The reasons why this MBI was correlated with improvements in WMC is not clear, and further research will be needed to understand the mechanisms involved.

One more discovery from this research team: Quach et al. (2016) found that the usual amount of time required for MBIs may be shortened while still delivering important benefits. Their intervention was about half as long as most interventions. This has implications for getting students to comply with instructions, and for reducing the cost associated with MBIs for schools wanting to implement them.

Future Directions

Research into mindfulness interventions is ongoing, and much more research needs to be done on MBIs in communities that learn differently, and on how they benefit from mindfulness practice when they are in the process of learning. In particular, the reliable effectiveness of MBIs in improving emotion regulation can help many students with learning differences overcome their challenges related to academic anxiety other emotion-related issues.  

If you are interested in learning more about mindfulness, there is now an excellent free Coursera course called “De-Mystifying Mindfulness” available.

If you would like to learn more about how schools are incorporating MBIs into their curricula, the non-profit Mindful Schools has information.

References

Hepark, S., Janssen, L., de Vries, A., Schoenberg, P. L., Donders, R., Kan, C. C., & Speckens, A. E. (2015). The Efficacy of Adapted MBCT on Core Symptoms and Executive Functioning in Adults with ADHD: A Preliminary Randomized Controlled Trial. Journal of attention disorders. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1087054715613587

Kabat-Zinn, J. (2003). Mindfulness-based interventions in context: past, present, and future. Clinical psychology: Science and practice, 10(2), 144-156. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/clipsy.bpg016

Khoury, B., Lecomte, T., Fortin, G., Masse, M., Therien, P., Bouchard, V., Chapleau. M., Paquin, K. & Hofmann, S. G. (2013). Mindfulness-based therapy: a comprehensive meta-analysis. Clinical psychology review, 33(6), 763-771. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2013.05.005

Khoury, B., Sharma, M., Rush, S. E., & Fournier, C. (2015). Mindfulness-based stress reduction for healthy individuals: a meta-analysis. Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 78(6), 519-528. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jpsychores.2015.03.009

Quach, D., Mano, K. E. J., & Alexander, K. (2016). A randomized controlled trial examining the effect of mindfulness meditation on working memory capacity in adolescents. Journal of Adolescent Health, 58(5), 489-496. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2015.09.024

Shapiro, S., Rechtschaffen, D., & de Sousa, S. (2016). Mindfulness Training for Teachers. In Handbook of Mindfulness in Education (pp. 83-97). Springer New York. 

Spek, A. A., Van Ham, N. C., & Nyklíček, I. (2013). Mindfulness-based therapy in adults with an autism spectrum disorder: a randomized controlled trial. Research in developmental disabilities, 34(1), 246-253. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ridd.2012.08.009

Tang, Y. Y., Hölzel, B. K., & Posner, M. I. (2015). The neuroscience of mindfulness meditation. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 16(4), 213-225. http://dx.doi.org/doi:10.1038/nrn3916

Tang, Y. Y., Ma, Y., Wang, J., Fan, Y., Feng, S., Lu, Q., Yu, Q., Sui, D., Rothbart, M. K., Fan, M. and Posner, M. I. (2007). Short-term meditation training improves attention and self-regulation. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 104(43), pp.17152-17156. http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0707678104

Zoogman, S., Goldberg, S. B., Hoyt, W. T., & Miller, L. (2015). Mindfulness interventions with youth: A meta-analysis. Mindfulness, 6(2), 290-302. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s12671-013-0260-4