Short-term effects and adherence to the practice of different meditation modalities in mindfulness-based interventions

Antecedents: Previous research has distinguished between mindfulness practices, specifically focused-attention meditation and open-monitoring meditation, noting that the different modalities appear to impact medium- and long-term benefits. However, understanding their distinct effects in the very short term is also crucial, as it may elucidate some of the adherence issues. Objectives: This study aims to examine the short-term effects of various meditation practices that differ in attentional focus and stimuli among novices. The focus is on immediate affect, perceived difficulty, and adherence. Method: A randomized controlled within-subject design with pretest and posttest measures was employed in a workshop consisting of four sessions (four weekly sessions of 1 hour each). Four experimental conditions were established: Internal and Focused (I-FA, Internal Focused-attention), External and Focused (E-FA, External Focused-attention), Internal and Open (IOM, Internal Open monitoring), and External and Open (E-OM, External Open monitoring). Results: The E-OM modality demonstrated a more significant reduction in discomfort compared to the I-OM modality. Participants reported higher difficulty in meditating on external stimuli compared to internal stimuli, irrespective of whether the meditation was focused or open. However, at least in this study, the modality type did not seem to influence adherence to the meditation practice. Conclusions: The findings suggest the importance of further investigating E-OM meditation as an alternative to I-OM at the beginning of mindfulness training.