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Mindfulness Meditation Impairs Task Motivation but Not Performance

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  • Hafenbrack, Andrew C.
  • Vohs, Kathleen D.

Abstract

A state of mindfulness is characterized by focused, nonjudgmental awareness of the present moment. The current research experimentally investigated how state mindfulness influences task motivation and performance, using multiple meditation inductions, comparison conditions, tasks, and participant samples. Mindfulness inductions, relative to comparison conditions, reduced motivation to tackle mundane tasks (Experiments 1–4) and pleasant tasks (Experiment 2). Decreased future focus and decreased arousal serially mediated the demotivating effect of mindfulness (Experiments 3 and 4). In contrast to changes in motivation, inducing a state of mindfulness did not affect task performance, as seen in all experiments but one (Experiments 2–5). Meta-analyses of performance experiments, including unreported findings (i.e., the file drawer), supported these conclusions. Experiment 5’s serial mediation showed that mindfulness enabled people to detach from stressors, which improved task focus. When combined with mindfulness’s demotivating effects, these results help explain why mindfulness does not alter performance.

Suggested Citation

  • Hafenbrack, Andrew C. & Vohs, Kathleen D., 2018. "Mindfulness Meditation Impairs Task Motivation but Not Performance," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 147(C), pages 1-15.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jobhdp:v:147:y:2018:i:c:p:1-15
    DOI: 10.1016/j.obhdp.2018.05.001
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    4. Dust, Scott B. & Liu, Haiyang & Wang, Siting & Reina, Christopher, 2022. "The effect of mindfulness and job demands on motivation and performance trajectories across the workweek: an entrainment theory perspective," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 108445, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    5. Kay, Adam A. & Masters-Waage, Theodore C. & Reb, Jochen & Vlachos, Pavlos A., 2023. "Mindfully outraged: Mindfulness increases deontic retribution for third-party injustice," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 176(C).
    6. Rupprecht, Silke & Koole, Wibo & Chaskalson, Michael & Tamdjidi, Chris & West, Michael, 2018. "Runnng too far ahead. Towards a broader understanding of mindfulness in organizations," MindRxiv dm7v2, Center for Open Science.
    7. Hafenbrack, Andrew C. & Cameron, Lindsey D. & Spreitzer, Gretchen M. & Zhang, Chen & Noval, Laura J. & Shaffakat, Samah, 2020. "Helping People by Being in the Present: Mindfulness Increases Prosocial Behavior," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 159(C), pages 21-38.
    8. Stuart-Edwards, Anastasia & MacDonald, Adriane & Ansari, Mahfooz A., 2023. "Twenty years of research on mindfulness at work: A structured literature review," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 169(C).
    9. Elisa Menardo & Donatella Di Marco & Sara Ramos & Margherita Brondino & Alicia Arenas & Patricia Costa & Carlos Vaz de Carvalho & Margherita Pasini, 2022. "Nature and Mindfulness to Cope with Work-Related Stress: A Narrative Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(10), pages 1-16, May.
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    11. Jutta Tobias Mortlock, 2023. "Next‐generation mindfulness: A mindfulness matrix to extend the transformative potential of mindfulness for consumer, organizational, and societal wellbeing," Journal of Consumer Affairs, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 57(2), pages 721-756, April.

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