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. 2018;9(2):575-584.
doi: 10.1007/s12671-017-0799-6. Epub 2017 Aug 31.

Mindfulness Dampens Cardiac Responses to Motion Scenes of Violence

Artur Brzozowski  1 , Steven M Gillespie  2 , Louise Dixon  3 , Ian J Mitchell  1
Affiliations

Mindfulness Dampens Cardiac Responses to Motion Scenes of Violence

Artur Brzozowski et al. Mindfulness (N Y). 2018.

Abstract

Mindfulness is linked with improved regulatory processes of attention and emotion. The potential benefits of mindfulness are vast, including more positive emotional states and diminished arousal in response to emotional stimuli. This study aims to expand of the current knowledge of the mechanisms of mindfulness by relating the latter to cardiovascular processes. The paper describes two studies which investigated the relationship of trait mindfulness to self-report measures of emotions elicited during a violent video clip and cardiovascular responses to the clip. Both studies recruited male and female participants, mainly university undergraduate students. The clip was 5-min-long and evoked mainly feelings of tension and disgust. In study 1, we found that higher scores for trait mindfulness were associated with increased scores for valence (r = .370, p = .009), indicating a more positive interpretation of the clip. In study 2, the average heart rate during the clip was lower than during the preceding (p < .05) and following (p < .01) non-exposure conditions. Higher trait mindfulness was related to diminished heart rate reactivity (r = -.364, p = .044) and recovery (r = -.415, p = .020). This latter effect was obtained only when trait anxiety was used as a statistical covariate. Additionally, increased trait mindfulness was accompanied by higher resting heart rate (r = .390, p = .027). These outcomes suggest that mindfulness is linked with reductions in negative feelings evoked by violent motion stimuli.

Keywords: Attention; Emotion; Heart rate; Trait mindfulness; Video.

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Conflict of interest statement

Compliance with Ethical StandardsThe authors that they have no conflict of interest.All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. Ethical approval for both studies was granted by the University of Birmingham Committee for Ethical Review.Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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