School of Psychology, NUI Galway, University Road, Galway, Ireland.
BMC Psychol. 2016 Apr 12;4:17. doi: 10.1186/s40359-016-0122-7.
While most modern research focuses on the clinical benefits of mindfulness, an emerging body of work suggests that mindfulness can facilitate self-regulation of everyday thinking in typically developing individuals. This behaviour is best captured using critical thinking assessments. The aim of this paper is to describe a rigorous, pre-registered study which will investigate the effect of an online mindfulness intervention on Executive Functioning, critical thinking skills and associated thinking dispositions.
The design employed is a randomised-controlled 2 (condition) X 2 (time) parallel-group design which is explanatory in nature. A sample of at least 60 participants will be recruited from the pool of students at NUI Galway, with those between the ages of 18 and 65 with an adequate level of English included. Participants will be randomly assigned following screening, using block randomisation with a fixed block of 6 and a 1:1 ratio, to either the mindfulness meditation group or a sham meditation group. Both groups will be given access to the Headspace app. This is an app which provides guided meditations to users. Participants in each group will receive unique codes granting access to either the experimental or active-control intervention materials. Group allocation will be double-blinded. The primary outcome measures will assess mindfulness, executive functioning, critical thinking, actively open-minded thinking and need for cognition. Secondary outcome measures will assess eudaimonic and hedonic wellbeing, positive and negative affect, and real-world outcomes. These will be measured at baseline and at the end of the intervention. Manipulation checks will assess adherence to the intervention, meditation quality and task difficulty and enjoyment.
If this intervention proves effective, it will show the potential of mindfulness practice to facilitate everyday critical thinking and should stimulate more interest in this line of research. If ineffective, claims regarding mindfulness and thinking skills should be tempered. This research was funded by a Galway Doctoral Research Scholarship awarded to the first author and was facilitated by Headspace Inc. who provided the intervention materials. The trial is registered in the ISRCTN registry and any protocol amendments will be recorded there (RCT ID: ISRCTN16588423. Registered 7th January 2016).
虽然大多数现代研究都集中在正念的临床益处上，但越来越多的研究表明，正念可以促进典型发展个体对日常思维的自我调节。批判性思维评估最能捕捉到这种行为。本文的目的是描述一项严格的、预先注册的研究，该研究将调查在线正念干预对执行功能、批判性思维技能和相关思维倾向的影响。
所采用的设计是随机对照 2（条件）x2（时间）平行组设计，具有解释性。将从高威国立大学的学生中招募至少 60 名参与者，年龄在 18 岁至 65 岁之间，英语水平足够的参与者将被纳入。参与者将在筛选后通过块随机化进行随机分组，块大小为 6，比例为 1:1，分为正念冥想组或假冥想组。两组都将被允许使用 Headspace 应用程序。这是一个为用户提供引导冥想的应用程序。每组参与者将获得唯一的代码，允许他们访问实验或主动控制干预材料。组分配将是双盲的。主要的测量指标将评估正念、执行功能、批判性思维、积极开放思维和认知需求。次要的测量指标将评估幸福论和快乐论的幸福感、积极和消极的影响，以及真实世界的结果。这些将在基线和干预结束时进行测量。操作检查将评估对干预的依从性、冥想质量和任务难度以及乐趣。
如果这种干预措施被证明有效，它将展示正念实践促进日常批判性思维的潜力，应该激发更多人对这一研究领域的兴趣。如果无效，就应该缓和关于正念和思维技能的说法。这项研究由高威博士奖学金资助，第一作者获得了奖学金，并由 Headspace Inc. 提供干预材料。该试验在 ISRCTN 注册，并将在那里记录任何方案修正案（RCT ID：ISRCTN16588423。注册于 2016 年 1 月 7 日）。
