Meditation and Decision Making Study III

Nonconscious Affective and Physiological Mediators of Behavioral Decision Making Study 3

The overarching goal of the proposed research is to investigate the role of emotions in facilitating successful lifestyle change, defined as healthy behavioral decisions repeated daily, or near daily.

Participants are asked to make two lab visits during the course of four weeks to complete electronic questionnaires, be monitored for psychophysiological activity (e.g. heart rate, blood pressure, respiration), and listen to a guided meditation audio track. Additionally, between the two visits participants will be asked to complete weekly surveys that ask about daily meditation practice (outside of the lab) and general emotions.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Fluent in written and spoken English, with a high school reading level
• Willingness or interest in learning to meditate
• Computer literate with internet access

Exclusion Criteria:

• Individuals who are able to read Chinese logographs
• Individuals who have or have had a regular meditation practice, defined as having attended a 6-week or longer meditation class, practicing meditation at least 3 days a week for up to 6-weeks.
• Individuals with allergies to adhesive materials