Lymeus Freddie
Institute for Housing and Urban Research, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden.
Department of Psychology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden.
Front Psychol. 2022 Mar 3;13:715411. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.715411. eCollection 2022.
Mindfulness training is often promoted as a method to train cognitive functions and has shown such effects in previous studies. However, many conventional mindfulness exercises for beginners require cognitive effort, which may be prohibitive for some, particularly for people who have more pronounced cognitive problems to begin with. An alternative mindfulness-based approach, called restoration skills training (ReST), draws on a restorative natural practice setting to help regulate attention effortlessly and promote meditative states during exercises. Previous research has shown that a 5-week ReST course requires less effort and is attended by higher compliance with practice recommendations than a conventional mindfulness course, without compromising long-term outcomes. Here, we compare ReST and a formally matched conventional mindfulness course regarding the role that initial individual differences in cognitive functioning play in determining practice compliance and long-term improvements in dispositional mindfulness and cognitive functioning. In line with expectations, ReST participants who had more pronounced cognitive problems to begin with practiced more during the course, which in turn explained much of their improvement in dispositional mindfulness and cognitive functioning. In contrast, initial cognitive functioning did not explain practice and improvement in the conventional mindfulness course. The results provide further support for the potential utility of ReST as a low-effort method for enhancing cognitive functioning among people who would struggle with the demands of conventional mindfulness training. With careful integration of mindfulness practices with a restorative natural setting, these people can develop mindfulness and self-regulation capabilities without relying on effortful training.
正念训练常被推崇为一种训练认知功能的方法，并且在先前的研究中已显示出此类效果。然而，许多针对初学者的传统正念练习需要认知努力，这对一些人来说可能难以做到，尤其是对于那些一开始就存在较为明显认知问题的人。一种基于正念的替代方法，称为恢复技能训练（ReST），借鉴了恢复性的自然练习环境，以帮助在练习过程中轻松调节注意力并促进冥想状态。先前的研究表明，与传统正念课程相比，为期5周的ReST课程所需努力更少，练习建议的依从性更高，且不影响长期效果。在此，我们比较了ReST和形式上匹配的传统正念课程，探讨了认知功能方面最初的个体差异在决定练习依从性以及性格正念和认知功能的长期改善中所起的作用。正如预期的那样，一开始认知问题较为明显的ReST参与者在课程期间练习得更多，这反过来又解释了他们在性格正念和认知功能方面的大部分改善。相比之下，在传统正念课程中，最初的认知功能并不能解释练习情况和改善情况。这些结果为ReST作为一种低努力方法在增强那些难以适应传统正念训练要求的人的认知功能方面的潜在效用提供了进一步支持。通过将正念练习与恢复性的自然环境仔细整合，这些人可以在不依赖费力训练的情况下培养正念和自我调节能力。
