The role of emotion regulation and cognitive control in the association between mindfulness disposition and stress.

Abstract

Dispositional mindfulness is associated with lower levels of perceived stress, with increased emotional regulation and cognitive control proposed as mechanisms underlying these stress-buffering effects of mindfulness. Within aging, these controlled processes represent paradoxically divergent trajectories such that older adults exhibit reduced cognitive control capacities, while emotional regulation abilities are well maintained, and at times enhanced. Our study seeks to examine the role of emotional regulation and cognitive control as possible mediators of the association between mindfulness and perceived stress. In addition, we examined age-related differences in the observed associations among mindfulness, stress, and controlled regulatory behavior. Fifty older adults and fifty young adults were recruited for the study and completed self-report measures assessing mindfulness disposition, perceived stress, and emotional regulation. In addition, computerized measures of cognitive control assessing working memory, inhibitory control, and set-shifting were also administered. We hypothesized a negative correlation between mindfulness disposition and perceived stress such that participants reporting higher levels of dispositional mindfulness would report lower stress. In addition, we hypothesized increased difficulties in emotion regulation and lower cognitive control to mediate this relationship. Corroborating previous literature, results revealed that mindfulness disposition and perceived stress were negatively correlated in both groups. However, emotion regulation, but not cognitive control, was found to mediate the relationship between mindfulness and perceived stress in both groups. Age group was not found to moderate the observed effects. Our findings reveal the role of enhanced emotional regulation abilities as a potential factor associated with the stress-reducing capacity of dispositional mindfulness.

Perceived stress is associated with increased rostral middle frontal gyrus cortical thickness: a family‐based and discordant‐sibling investigation

“…), which has been correlated with reduced stress perception across stages of adulthood (Prakash et al . ).…”

“…Thus, these data suggest that these differences arise from individual specific genetic and/or environmental effects, and that sibling shared genetic and environmental factors are not predisposing in this manner. Other evidence also contradicts this interpretation, as relatively decreased cortical thickness in the DLPFC (including within the RMFG) in adolescent females has been associated with decreased cognitive reappraisal, a form of emotion regulation (Vijayakumar et al 2014), which has been correlated with reduced stress perception across stages of adulthood (Prakash et al 2015).…”

Neural Basis of Mindfulness Interventions that Moderate the Impact of Stress on the Brain

“…For example, those individuals who rated themselves as more mindful, i.e. had greater 'dispositional mindfulness', generally report lower levels of perceived stress (Prakash et al, 2015). This is important because the level of stress is strongly related to physical and mental health as well as cortical thinning.…”

Developing and validating a localised, self-training mindfulness programme for older Singaporean adults: effects on cognitive functioning and implications for healthcare

“…(22,(27)(28)(29) Other studies have also reported the potential effects of mindfulness on inhibitory control (i.e. the ability to override more dominant or automatic responses), cognitive flexibility (the ability to switch between tasks or sets of rules, also referred to as attentional switching) (23)(24)(25)27,(30)(31)(32) and speed of processing (the speed at which a person performs a cognitive activity), (22,33,34) despite other contradictory findings. (35) However, the mixed results could reflect methodological, training or sample differences.…”

“…(19,20) This is due to the reciprocal connections between attention and working memory (21) as well as better emotional regulation and the inhibition of secondary elaboration of thoughts. (19,(22)(23)(24)(25) Working memory is a limited-capacity system, where information is temporarily stored and manipulated. (26) An improvement in sustained attention following mindfulnessbased stress reduction was found in some studies, but not in others.…”