In one of three experiments, participants who listened to a 15-minute mindfulness recording were significantly more likely to falsely remember seeing the word “trash” in a list of similar words than participants who were asked to think about whatever came to mind. (39% in the mindfulness condition vs. 20% in the control.) The study, led by Brent M. Wilson at the University of California, San Diego suggests a possible adverse effect of mindfulness meditation. The researchers say that embracing judgment-free awareness and acceptance may impair meditators’ reality-monitoring accuracy, which increases their susceptibility to false memories.
Source: Increased False-Memory Susceptibility After Mindfulness Meditation
