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The protective effects of mindfulness training

Mindfulness Training had a positive effect on both working memory capacity and mood in a group of Marine reservists during the high-stress pre-deployment interval.

Mindfulness Training had a positive effect on both working memory capacity and mood in a group of Marine reservists during the high-stress pre-deployment interval. While those who weren’t given the 8-week MT program, as well as those who spent little time engaging in mindfulness exercises, showed greater negative mood and decreased working memory capacity over the eight weeks, those who recorded high practice time showed increased capacity and decreased negative mood. A civilian control group showed no change in working memory capacity over the period. The program, called Mindfulness-based Mind Fitness Training (MMFT™), blended mindfulness skills training with concrete applications for the operational environment and information and skills about stress, trauma and resilience in the body. The researchers suggest that mindfulness training may help anyone who must maintain peak performance in the face of extremely stressful circumstances.

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-02/uop-bfm021510.php

Reference

Jha, A. P., Stanley, E. A., Kiyonaga, A., Wong, L., & Gelfand, L. (2010). Examining the protective effects of mindfulness training on working memory capacity and affective experience. Emotion (Washington, D.C.), 10(1), 54-64. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20141302

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