IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/jobhdp/v147y2018icp1-15.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Mindfulness Meditation Impairs Task Motivation but Not Performance

Author

Listed:
  • 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
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S074959781630646X
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.obhdp.2018.05.001?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Yam, Kai Chi & Chen, Xiao-Ping & Reynolds, Scott J., 2014. "Ego depletion and its paradoxical effects on ethical decision making," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 124(2), pages 204-214.
    2. Choi, Ellen & Tobias, Jutta, 2015. "Mind the Gap: The Link Between Mindfulness and Performance at Work Needs More Attention," Industrial and Organizational Psychology, Cambridge University Press, vol. 8(4), pages 629-633, December.
    3. Nicole Ruedy & Maurice Schweitzer, 2010. "In the Moment: The Effect of Mindfulness on Ethical Decision Making," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 95(1), pages 73-87, September.
    4. Grant, Adam M. & Campbell, Elizabeth M. & Chen, Grace & Cottone, Keenan & Lapedis, David & Lee, Karen, 2007. "Impact and the art of motivation maintenance: The effects of contact with beneficiaries on persistence behavior," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 103(1), pages 53-67, May.
    5. Ajzen, Icek, 1991. "The theory of planned behavior," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 50(2), pages 179-211, December.
    6. Dane, Erik, 2015. "Mindfulness and Performance: Cautionary Notes on a Compelling Concept," Industrial and Organizational Psychology, Cambridge University Press, vol. 8(4), pages 647-652, December.
    7. Brooks, Alison Wood & Schweitzer, Maurice E., 2011. "Can Nervous Nelly negotiate? How anxiety causes negotiators to make low first offers, exit early, and earn less profit," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 115(1), pages 43-54, May.
    8. Hafenbrack, Andrew C., 2017. "Mindfulness Meditation as an On-The-Spot Workplace Intervention," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 75(C), pages 118-129.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. 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.
    2. Julie Bayle-Cordier & Loïc Berger & Rayan Elatmani & Massimo Tavoni, 2023. "Breath, Love, Walk? The Impact of Mindfulness Interventions on Climate Policy Support and Environmental Attitudes," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(13), pages 1-29, July.
    3. Amy Errmann & Felix Septianto, 2023. "Balancing evolutionary impulses: Effects of mindfulness on virtue food preference," Journal of Consumer Affairs, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 57(2), pages 848-870, April.
    4. 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.
    5. 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).
    6. 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.
    7. Masters-Waage, Theodore C. & Nai, Jared & Reb, Jochen & Sim, Samantha & Narayanan, Jayanth & Tan, Noriko, 2021. "Going far together by being here now: Mindfulness increases cooperation in negotiations," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 167(C), pages 189-205.
    8. Kay, Adam A. & Skarlicki, Daniel P., 2020. "Cultivating a conflict-positive workplace: How mindfulness facilitates constructive conflict management," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 159(C), pages 8-20.
    9. 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.
    10. 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).
    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.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. 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.
    2. Hafenbrack, Andrew C., 2017. "Mindfulness Meditation as an On-The-Spot Workplace Intervention," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 75(C), pages 118-129.
    3. Katarina Katja Mihelič & Barbara Culiberg, 2019. "Reaping the Fruits of Another’s Labor: The Role of Moral Meaningfulness, Mindfulness, and Motivation in Social Loafing," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 160(3), pages 713-727, December.
    4. Andrew Harrison & James Summers & Brian Mennecke, 2018. "The Effects of the Dark Triad on Unethical Behavior," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 153(1), pages 53-77, November.
    5. Yip, Jeremy A. & Schweitzer, Maurice E. & Nurmohamed, Samir, 2018. "Trash-talking: Competitive incivility motivates rivalry, performance, and unethical behavior," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 144(C), pages 125-144.
    6. Kanfer, Ruth & Chen, Gilad, 2016. "Motivation in organizational behavior: History, advances and prospects," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 136(C), pages 6-19.
    7. Morris, Michael W. & Hong, Ying-yi & Chiu, Chi-yue & Liu, Zhi, 2015. "Normology: Integrating insights about social norms to understand cultural dynamics," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 129(C), pages 1-13.
    8. 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).
    9. Maria Andersson & Ola Eriksson & Chris Von Borgstede, 2012. "The Effects of Environmental Management Systems on Source Separation in the Work and Home Settings," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 4(6), pages 1-17, June.
    10. Tran Huy Phuong & Thanh Trung Hieu, 2015. "Predictors of Entrepreneurial Intentions of Undergraduate Students in Vietnam: An Empirical Study," International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, Human Resource Management Academic Research Society, International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, vol. 5(8), pages 46-55, August.
    11. Peng Cheng & Zhe Ouyang & Yang Liu, 0. "The effect of information overload on the intention of consumers to adopt electric vehicles," Transportation, Springer, vol. 0, pages 1-20.
    12. Alsalem, Amani & Fry, Marie-Louise & Thaichon, Park, 2020. "To donate or to waste it: Understanding posthumous organ donation attitude," Australasian marketing journal, Elsevier, vol. 28(3), pages 87-97.
    13. Benoît Lécureux & Adrien Bonnet & Ouassim Manout & Jaâfar Berrada & Louafi Bouzouina, 2022. "Acceptance of Shared Autonomous Vehicles: A Literature Review of stated choice experiments," Working Papers hal-03814947, HAL.
    14. Kristin Thomas & Evalill Nilsson & Karin Festin & Pontus Henriksson & Mats Lowén & Marie Löf & Margareta Kristenson, 2020. "Associations of Psychosocial Factors with Multiple Health Behaviors: A Population-Based Study of Middle-Aged Men and Women," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(4), pages 1-17, February.
    15. Ni, Dan & Jiwen Song, Lynda & Zheng, Xiaoming & Zhu, Jinlong & Zhang, Mengyi & Xu, Lingxiao, 2022. "Extending a helping hand: How receiving gratitude makes a difference in employee performance during a crisis," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 149(C), pages 967-982.
    16. Kamruzzaman, Md. & Baker, Douglas & Washington, Simon & Turrell, Gavin, 2013. "Residential dissonance and mode choice," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 33(C), pages 12-28.
    17. Ficko, Andrej & Boncina, Andrej, 2013. "Probabilistic typology of management decision making in private forest properties," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 27(C), pages 34-43.
    18. Muhammad Shahid Qureshi & Saadat Saeed & Syed Waleed Mehmood Wasti, 2016. "The impact of various entrepreneurial interventions during the business plan competition on the entrepreneur identity aspirations of participants," Journal of Global Entrepreneurship Research, Springer;UNESCO Chair in Entrepreneurship, vol. 6(1), pages 1-18, December.
    19. Julie Bayle-Cordier & Loïc Berger & Rayan Elatmani & Massimo Tavoni, 2023. "Breath, Love, Walk? The Impact of Mindfulness Interventions on Climate Policy Support and Environmental Attitudes," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(13), pages 1-29, July.
    20. Szu‐Szu Ho & Rosie Stenhouse & Aisha Holloway, 2020. "Understanding HIV‐positive drug users’ experiences of taking highly active antiretroviral treatment: Identity–Values–Conscious engagement model," Journal of Clinical Nursing, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 29(9-10), pages 1561-1575, May.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:jobhdp:v:147:y:2018:i:c:p:1-15. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/obhdp .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.