Dissecting De-automatization

NCT03456505 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: IRB_00088540
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 53
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

The proposed study will assess the effects of mindfulness meditation training on an eye blink conditioning (EBC) task in a sample of novice meditators. This methodology will allow investigation of whether mindfulness interrupts classical conditioning through the process of de-automatization. Implicit learning rates, as reflective of unconscious habit formation and measured by the frequency of conditioned responses during the EBC, will be a main outcome of interest. The proposed study will also assess the effects of mindfulness meditation training on an emotion regulation (ER) task, with a specific focus on reappraisal of negative images and savoring of positive images.

Conditions

Mindfulness

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Conditioned Eyeblink Frequency

  Between group differences in the frequency of conditioned eyeblinks over the six reinforcement blocks.

  9 minutes

Secondary Outcomes (3)

• Positive Emotion Regulation Task

  5 minutes

• Negative Emotion Regulation Task

  5 minutes

• Self-Transcendence (NADA-State)

  2 minutes

Study Arms (2)

Mindfulness

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants randomly assigned to the mindfulness meditation condition will meet for five, 15-minute sessions, in which they will receive training in basic mindfulness skills (Wallace, 2006).

Behavioral: Mindfulness Meditation Training

Active Listening

ACTIVE COMPARATOR

Participants randomly assigned to the active listening condition will meet for five, 15-minute sessions, in which they will listen to Gilbert White's The Natural History of Selborne.

Behavioral: Active Listening

Interventions

Mindfulness Meditation Training BEHAVIORAL

A researcher will guide participants through 5 mindfulness meditations, each lasting 11 minutes in length.

Mindfulness

Active Listening BEHAVIORAL

A researcher will read participants 5 selections from The Natural History of Selborne, each lasting 11 minutes in length.

Active Listening

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years - 60 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64)

You may qualify if:

• Age 18-60,
• willingness to participate in study interventions and assessments.

You may not qualify if:

• Prior experience with Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction, Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy, or Mindfulness-Based Relapse Prevention, or a history of meditation practice,
• Learning disability, significant memory problems or significant attentional disruptions as determined by self-report,
• History of head injury resulting in loss of consciousness.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• University of Utah: lead

Study Sites (1)

University of Utah

Salt Lake City, Utah, 84112, United States

Location

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: SINGLE
• Who Masked: PARTICIPANT
• Purpose: BASIC SCIENCE
• Intervention Model: FACTORIAL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Principal Investigator

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: January 12, 2018
• First Posted: March 7, 2018
• Study Start: August 15, 2017
• Primary Completion: June 1, 2018
• Study Completion: July 1, 2018
• Last Updated: October 1, 2018

Record last verified: 2018-09

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

US (1)