Meditate to create: the impact of focused-attention and open-monitoring training on convergent and divergent thinking.
Level 3 - non-randomized controlled study
Experimental human cognitive study without explicit randomization reported in abstract (graded by design analogy)
PubMed 22529832 · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2012.00116
What was done
The authors investigated the effects of two meditation practices—focused-attention (FA) and open-monitoring (OM) meditation—on creativity tasks measuring convergent thinking (generating a single solution) and divergent thinking (generating multiple new ideas).
What was found
The abstract reports no numerical values, statistical tests, or effect sizes. Directionally, OM meditation promoted divergent thinking, while FA meditation did not sustain convergent thinking. The authors suggest positive mood induced by meditation boosted divergent thinking and counteracted convergent thinking.
Why it matters
It highlights that different meditation styles exert distinct cognitive-control states rather than a uniform effect on creative problem-solving.
Limits
The abstract reports no sample size (n), participant characteristics, baseline scores, exact protocols, or quantitative statistics. It does not state whether a non-meditation or active control group was used.
Cited by
- supports Open monitoring meditation practice is associated with improved creative capacity in laboratory tasks.