The Effects of Meditation Training on Vigilance Performance
Abstract
This study investigated the relationships that exist between meditation training, vigilance performance, and thought intrusions. Twenty-four subjects performed a vigilance task in which hit rates, false alarm rates, and measures of SDT were recorded. Twelve of these subjects were then given four 30- minute meditation training sessions. Subjects were instructed to report though intrusions during each training session. Following training, all 24 subjects performed the vigilance task again. A vigilance decrement was found for hit rate and appears to have been caused by a sensitivity decrement. Meditation training did not significantly reduce the vigilance decrement or improve overall hit-rate performance. However, reported thought intrusions declined significantly over training sessions, and a significant inverse relationship was found between though intrusions and hit rate. The inverse relationship increased in strength with meditation training. These findings suggest that hit rate performance on a vigilance task may be improved with more extensive meditation training.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- May 01, 1988
- Accession Number
- ADA196543
Entities
People
- Hal M. Clark
Organizations
- Air Force Institute of Technology