Integrating mindfulness and connection practices into preservice teacher education results in durable automatic race bias reductions.

Automatic race bias, which is the tendency to associate positive attributes more quickly with White as compared to Black faces, reflects enculturation processes linked to inequitable teaching behaviors. In sample of undergraduate preservice teachers (N = 88), we examined whether a novel mindfulness and connection practice intervention without anti-bias content incorporated into undergraduate teacher education would result in reduced automatic race bias favoring White faces. Random assignment to the intervention predicted significantly reduced race preference for White child faces immediately after the intervention. These significant reductions persisted at the 6-month follow-up, which are the most durable reductions in automatic race bias reported to date in adults. Data from semi-structured interviews indicated that the intervention enhanced self-awareness and self-regulation while reducing automatic responding among preservice teachers. These qualities are instrumental to adaptive teaching and putative mechanisms for reducing automatic race bias. The potential value of integrating mindfulness and connection practices into undergraduate preservice teacher education is discussed.

Brief breath awareness training yields poorer working memory performance in the context of acute stress.

Mindfulness-based interventions that span multiple sessions over time appear to confer psychological benefits. However, the effects of brief periods of mindfulness meditation training are less clear, particularly on measures of cognitive functioning. This study assessed whether brief mindfulness practice (breath awareness) or training in two other contemplative practices - loving-kindness and gratitude - differentially impact working memory performance following acute physiological stress relative to an attentional control. Participants (n = 162) were randomly assigned to one of four training groups and completed the automated Operation Span (OSPAN) task pre-training and again after undergoing the cold pressor task. Three of the four groups improved in OSPAN performance, with loving-kindness, gratitude, and attentional control conditions showing increases in OSPAN relative to breath awareness. Changes in OSPAN were not correlated with changes in positive or negative affect. It appears that brief breath awareness training may not effectively buffer against acute stress in this predominantly meditation naïve sample and may in fact impair subsequent cognitive performance relative to a control or other contemplative practices. A granular approach is warranted to understand potentially distinct and contextually variable effects of different contemplative practices. Implications are discussed in light of the stress buffering hypothesis and Monitor and Acceptance Theory.Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT02214264.

Does practice quality mediate the relationship between practice time and outcome in mindfulness-based stress reduction?

Interventions based on mindfulness meditation are increasingly common and evidence exists supporting their use. However, questions remain regarding treatment mechanisms accounting for beneficial effects. The current study examined 1 candidate mechanism-mindfulness practice quality-as a mediator of the link between practice time and outcome within mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR). Participants (n = 96) completed measures of mindfulness and psychological symptoms at baseline and posttreatment. A weekly questionnaire assessed practice time and quality over the 8 weeks of MBSR. Multilevel models accounted for nesting within participants, MBSR groups, and instructors. Results generally supported the reliability and validity of a weekly single-item practice quality measure. Greater practice time was associated with improved practice quality (r = .48). Increases in practice quality predicted improvements in self-report mindfulness and psychological symptoms (ßs = .35, .30, and -.19, ps < .05), but not behavioral mindfulness (ß = -.02, p = .879). In multilevel mediation models, improved practice quality mediated the link between practice time and changes in self-report mindfulness, suggesting improved practice quality functions as a mechanism linking practice time and outcome in MBSR. Future research evaluating practice quality in clinical samples, in tandem with intensive sampling paradigms (e.g., experience sampling) and objective (behavioral, physiological) outcomes may be warranted. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

Mindfulness video game improves connectivity of the fronto-parietal attentional network in adolescents: A multi-modal imaging study.

Mindfulness training has been shown to improve attention and change the underlying brain substrates in adults. Most mindfulness training programs involve a myriad of techniques, and it is difficult to attribute changes to any particular aspect of the program. Here, we created a video game, Tenacity, which models a specific mindfulness technique - focused attention on one's breathing - and assessed its potential to train an attentional network in adolescents. A combined analysis of resting state functional connectivity (rs-FC) and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) yielded convergent results - change in communication within the left fronto-parietal network after two weeks of playing Tenacity compared to a control game. Rs-FC analysis showed greater connectivity between left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) and left inferior parietal cortex (IPC) in the Tenacity group. Importantly, changes in left dlPFC - IPC rs-FC and changes in structural connectivity of the white matter tract that connects these regions -left superior longitudinal fasiculus (SLF) - were associated with changes in performance on an attention task. Finally, changes in left dlPFC - IPC rs-FC correlated with the change in left SLF structural connectivity as measured by fractional anisotropy (FA) in the Tenacity group only.

Still facial photographs of long-term meditators are perceived by naïve observers as less neurotic, more conscientious and more mindful than non-meditating controls.

The impact of meditation training on self-report psychological variables is well-established. Although meditation training is purported to have interpersonal impacts, whether naïve observers perceive differences associated with long- and short-term meditation training is largely unknown. The current study provided a stringent test of this possibility through observer ratings of a very thin slice of expressive behavior: still photographs. Photographs were drawn from a larger study investigating differences between long-term meditators (LTM) and meditation naïve participants (MNP) who were exposed to one of three experimental conditions. Photographs of ninety-nine targets (16 LTMs, 83 MNPs) were taken at baseline, prior to the randomization of MNPs to an eight-week mindfulness meditation course (mindfulness-based stress reduction; n = 27), an active control comparison condition (health enhancement program; n = 29), or a waitlist control group (n = 27) and again after the training period. Pre- and post-intervention photographs were then rated by 25 meditation teachers and 86 undergraduate raters on five domains theoretically linked to meditation training. Results indicated that relative to MNPs, LTMs were rated as less neurotic and more conscientious, mindful, and "comfortable in their own skin" at baseline (ds = 0.61 to 0.70, ps < .050), although not more agreeable or attractive. Results were largely unchanged when controlling for five observable confounds (age, gender, race/ethnicity, body mass index, attractiveness). No evidence was found supporting experimental effects of short-term meditation training on observer ratings. Thus, it seems that if meditation is associated with observable differences in facial behavior, effects may be limited to long-term training.

Developmental Differences in Prosocial Behavior Between Preschool and Late Elementary School.

Research points to evidence of innate prosocial tendencies present early in life. As more complex cognitive abilities emerge with development, this may alter the expression and nature of prosocial behaviors over time. Sharing is one important expression of prosocial behavior. Our aim was to explore how children's sharing behavior with different recipients across important social categories changes by comparing two distinct transitional periods in development. We compared the responses of 46 preschoolers (M age = 4.95 years) and 52 5th graders (M age = 9.98 years) on two social decision-making paradigms. Results showed that older children shared more selectively depending on the recipient than younger children, who shared resources more equitably with different recipients. A second paradigm revealed greater uncoupling of behavior and cognition among older children, such that prosocial behavior in preschoolers was more closely linked to their judgments about the recipient's character than it was for 5th graders. Increased cognitive complexity that emerges over the course of development can be used to help or discriminate against others, depending upon how those capacities are channeled. Therefore, how these abilities are shaped has important societal consequences.

Divergent effects of brief contemplative practices in response to an acute stressor: A randomized controlled trial of brief breath awareness, loving-kindness, gratitude or an attention control practice.

Mindfulness practices are increasingly being utilized as a method for cultivating well-being. The term mindfulness is often used as an umbrella for a variety of different practices and many mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) contain multiple styles of practice. Despite the diversity of practices within MBIs, few studies have investigated whether constituent practices produce specific effects. We randomized 156 undergraduates to one of four brief practices: breath awareness, loving-kindness, gratitude, or to an attention control condition. We assessed practice effects on affect following brief training, and effects on affect and behavior after provocation with a stressor (i.e., Cold pressor test). Results indicate that gratitude training significantly improved positive affect compared to breath awareness (d = 0.58) and loving-kindness led to significantly greater reductions in implicit negative affect compared to the control condition (d = 0.59) immediately after brief practice. In spite of gains in positive affect, the gratitude group demonstrated increased reactivity to the stressor, reporting the CPT as significantly more aversive than the control condition (d = 0.46) and showing significantly greater increases in negative affect compared to the breath awareness, loving-kindness, and control groups (ds = 0.55, 0.60, 0.65, respectively). Greater gains in implicit positive affect following gratitude training predicted decreased post-stressor likability ratings of novel neutral faces compared to breath awareness, loving-kindness, and control groups (ds = - 0.39, -0.40, -0.33, respectively) as well. Moreover, the gratitude group was significantly less likely to donate time than the loving-kindness group in an ecologically valid opportunity to provide unrewarded support. These data suggest that different styles of contemplative practice may produce different effects in the context of brief, introductory practice and these differences may be heightened by stress. Implications for the study of contemplative practices are discussed.

Neural correlates of video game empathy training in adolescents: a randomized trial.

The ability to understand emotional experiences of others, empathy, is a valuable skill for effective social interactions. Various types of training increase empathy in adolescents, but their impact on brain circuits underlying empathy has not been examined. Video games provide a unique medium familiar and engaging to adolescents and can be used to deliver training at scale. We developed an empathy training video game, Crystals of Kaydor (Crystals), and investigated whether playing Crystals increases empathic accuracy (EA) and related brain activation in adolescents (N = 74; 27 female; mean age(sd) = 12.8(0.7) years; age range 11-14 years). Participants completed a resting state functional MRI (rs-fMRI) scan and an EA task during an fMRI scan before and after 2 weeks of daily gameplay with either the empathy training game, Crystals (N = 34), or the commercial video game Bastion (N = 40), an active control condition. There were no group differences in EA improvement following gameplay, however, engagement with training aspects of Crystals was associated with a higher increase in EA-related activation in right temporoparietal junction following gameplay. Moreover, rs-fMRI connectivity in empathy-related brain circuits (posterior cingulate-medial prefrontal cortex; MPFC) was stronger after Crystals gameplay compared to Bastion. The more individuals' EA increased following Crystals versus Bastion, the stronger their rs-fMRI connectivity in brain circuits relevant for emotion regulation (amygdala-MPFC). These findings suggest that a video game designed to increase empathic accuracy produces behaviorally-relevant, functional neural changes in fewer than 6 h of gameplay in adolescents.

Neural correlates of empathic accuracy in adolescence.

Empathy, the ability to understand others' emotions, can occur through perspective taking and experience sharing. Neural systems active when adults empathize include regions underlying perspective taking (e.g. medial prefrontal cortex; MPFC) and experience sharing (e.g. inferior parietal lobule; IPL). It is unknown whether adolescents utilize networks implicated in both experience sharing and perspective taking when accurately empathizing. This question is critical given the importance of accurately understanding others' emotions for developing and maintaining adaptive peer relationships during adolescence. We extend the literature on empathy in adolescence by determining the neural basis of empathic accuracy, a behavioral assay of empathy that does not bias participants toward the exclusive use of perspective taking or experience sharing. Participants (N = 155, aged 11.1-15.5 years) watched videos of 'targets' describing emotional events and continuously rated the targets' emotions during functional magnetic resonance imaging scanning. Empathic accuracy related to activation in regions underlying perspective taking (MPFC, temporoparietal junction and superior temporal sulcus), while activation in regions underlying experience sharing (IPL, anterior cingulate cortex and anterior insula) related to lower empathic accuracy. These results provide novel insight into the neural basis of empathic accuracy in adolescence and suggest that perspective taking processes may be effective for increasing empathy.

Getting a Grip on the Handgrip Task: Handgrip Duration Correlates with Neuroticism But Not Conscientiousness.

Questions regarding the replicability of key findings in the self-regulation literature (e.g., ego-depletion effect) have led some to call for a more thorough evaluation of commonly used measures of self-control. The isometric handgrip task is one such measure. The current study examined correlates of handgrip persistence using data drawn from a larger randomized controlled trial. Handgrip persistence was measured both at baseline and following a physical stressor (cold pressor test). Correlations were examined between handgrip performance and personality traits theoretically closely linked with self-regulation: conscientiousness and neuroticism. Baseline handgrip performance was correlated with several measures drawn from the nomological network of self-regulation including measures of trait neuroticism, mindfulness, anxiety sensitivity, perceived stress, and positive affect, although not with trait conscientiousness. Baseline handgrip predicted aversiveness experienced during the physical stressor, while changes in handgrip performance tracked changes in implicit and explicit negative affect (i.e., affective reactivity). These associations were largely maintained when controlling for variables highly correlated with overall grip strength (i.e., gender, height, and weight), although correlations separated by gender suggest associations were primarily driven by female participants. Results support future research using the handgrip task.

Promoting prosocial behavior and self-regulatory skills in preschool children through a mindfulness-based Kindness Curriculum.

Self-regulatory abilities are robust predictors of important outcomes across the life span, yet they are rarely taught explicitly in school. Using a randomized controlled design, the present study investigated the effects of a 12-week mindfulness-based Kindness Curriculum (KC) delivered in a public school setting on executive function, self-regulation, and prosocial behavior in a sample of 68 preschool children. The KC intervention group showed greater improvements in social competence and earned higher report card grades in domains of learning, health, and social-emotional development, whereas the control group exhibited more selfish behavior over time. Interpretation of effect sizes overall indicate small to medium effects favoring the KC group on measures of cognitive flexibility and delay of gratification. Baseline functioning was found to moderate treatment effects with KC children initially lower in social competence and executive functioning demonstrating larger gains in social competence relative to the control group. These findings, observed over a relatively short intervention period, support the promise of this program for promoting self-regulation and prosocial behavior in young children. They also support the need for future investigation of program implementation across diverse settings.

Mindfulness for teachers: A pilot study to assess effects on stress, burnout and teaching efficacy.

Despite the crucial role of teachers in fostering children's academic learning and social-emotional well-being, addressing teacher stress in the classroom remains a significant challenge in education. The present study reports results from a randomized controlled pilot trial of a modified Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction course (mMBSR) adapted specifically for teachers. Results suggest the course may be a promising intervention, with participants showing significant reductions in psychological symptoms and burnout, improvements in observer-rated classroom organization and performance on a computer task of affective attentional bias, and increases in self-compassion. In contrast, control group participants showed declines in cortisol functioning over time and marginally significant increases in burnout. Furthermore, changes in mindfulness were correlated in the expected direction with changes across several outcomes (psychological symptoms, burnout, sustained attention) in the intervention group. Implications of these findings for the training and support of teachers are discussed.

Reciprocal associations between family and peer conflict in adolescents' daily lives.

Using a daily diary method, this study assessed daily episodes of family and peer conflict among 578 adolescents in the 9th grade to examine potential bidirectional associations between the family and peer domains. Adolescents completed a daily diary checklist at the end of each day over a 14-day period to report events of conflict and their emotional states for a given day. Overall, the within-person models provided evidence for the bidirectional nature of family peer linkages across gender and ethnicity. Adolescents experienced more peer conflict on days in which they argued with parents or other family members, and vice versa. Effect of family conflict further spilled over into peer relationships the next day and 2 days later, whereas peer conflict predicted only the following day family conflict. Adolescents' emotional distress partially explained these short-term spillovers between family and peer conflict.

Gender differences in adolescents' daily interpersonal events and well-being.

This study examined daily interpersonal events with parents and friends and daily well-being among 589 ninth-grade students (mean age = 14.9 years) from Mexican, Chinese, and European backgrounds. Associations were examined using a daily diary methodology whereby adolescents reported on positive and negative interpersonal experiences and mood each day for 2 weeks. Analyses using hierarchical linear modeling revealed bidirectional associations between adolescents' daily social interactions and mood. Findings indicated gender differences in adolescents' reactivity to daily interpersonal events as well as in the strength of daily mood as a predictor of interpersonal events. Furthermore, the ratio of positive to negative events experienced daily was consequential for adolescents' daily mood. Findings have practical implications for adolescents' everyday functioning and potential long-term adjustment.

Mindfulness and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a disorder characterized by attentional difficulties. Mindfulness is a receptive attention to present experience. Both ADHD and mindfulness are associated with attention and personality. This study tests whether individuals with ADHD have lower mindfulness scores than controls and, if true, whether personality contributes to these differences. One hundred and five adults (half with ADHD) were assessed for mindfulness, using the Kentucky Inventory of Mindfulness Skills, and personality, using the Tridimensional Character Inventory. Individuals with ADHD report themselves as less mindful than non-ADHD controls and more novelty-seeking, less self-directed, and more self-transcendent. Mindfulness is negatively associated with ADHD and positively associated with self-directedness and self-transcendence. Analyses of subscales of mindfulness suggest that ADHD is associated most with the "Acting in Awareness" dimension, perhaps because of shared items reflecting attentional variability. The current findings support that a large portion of variability in trait mindfulness can be explained by ADHD status and personality traits of self-directedness and self-transcendence. It further suggests that interventions that increase mindfulness might improve symptoms of ADHD and increase self-directedness and/or self-transcendence.

Daily family conflict and emotional distress among adolescents from Latin American, Asian, and European backgrounds.

The authors employed a daily diary method to assess daily frequencies of interparental and parent-adolescent conflict over a 2-week period and their implications for emotional distress across the high school years in a longitudinal sample of 415 adolescents from Latin American, Asian, and European backgrounds. Although family conflict remained fairly infrequent among all ethnic backgrounds across the high school years, its impact on emotional distress was significant across ethnicity and gender. In addition, parent-adolescent conflict significantly mediated the association between interparental conflict and emotional distress. These associations were observed at both the individual and the daily levels, providing evidence for both the chronic and episodic implications of family conflict for adolescents' emotional adjustment.

Lessons Learned from "integrating" intensive family-based interventions into medical care settings for mothers living with HIV/AIDS and their adolescent children.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has recommended integrating behavioral interventions into medical care settings for persons living with HIV. Delivering an intensive, family-based intervention for mothers living with HIV (MLH) (n = 173) and their adolescent children (n = 116) integrated into medical care was problematic. Despite the fact that nearly half of MLH were recruited at HIV/AIDS clinics, community centers and children's hospitals were the most popular and most successful sites for the delivery of the intervention. We provide recommendations for how to integrate intensive interventions into medical care, given the needs of MLH, their adolescents, and the organizations serving them.

Family and school spillover in adolescents' daily lives.

This study examined spillover between daily family stressors and school problems among 589 ninth-grade students (mean age = 14.9 years) from Mexican, Chinese, and European backgrounds. Spillover was examined using a daily diary methodology in which adolescents reported on their school and family experiences each day for 2 weeks. Analyses using hierarchical linear modeling revealed reciprocal spillover effects between adolescents' daily functioning in the family and school domains that spanned several days. Longitudinal analyses indicated that spillover between family stressors and school problems also occurs across the high school years, from 9th to 12th grade, and that both are predictive of poorer academic performance in 12th grade. These findings have practical implications for adolescents' academic achievement trajectories and general well-being.

Classroom social experiences as predictors of academic performance.

A model linking children's peer acceptance in the classroom to academic performance via academic self-concept and internalizing symptoms was tested in a longitudinal study. A sample of 248 children was followed from 4th to 6th grade, with data collected from different informants in each year of the study to reduce respondent bias. A path analysis supported the model; a lack of peer acceptance in the classroom in 4th grade predicted lower academic self-concept and more internalizing symptoms the following year, which in turn, predicted lower academic performance in 6th grade. An alternative path with internalizing symptoms predicting declines in peer acceptance was tested and received some support as well. Implications of the findings for schools are discussed.