Previous research has shown that long-term mindfulness training has beneficial effects on cognitive functioning and emotional regulation, but results are mixed regarding single mindfulness exercises, especially on attention and memory tasks. Thus, the present study aimed to analyse the effects of the Focused Breathing Exercise (FB) on cognitive performance, using standardised tests. Forty-six healthy undergraduate students were randomly assigned either to a FB or a Control condition. Two cognitive tasks (the Concentrated Attention task of the Toulouse-Pierron Factorial Battery and the Logical Memory Subtest I from the Wechsler Memory Scale III), along with mood evaluations (the Positive and Negative Affect Scale), were implemented both before and after the interventions. Results showed no significant differences for the attention task and mood evaluations. Nonetheless, the FB enhanced performance for the memory task significantly more than the Control exercise. The findings highlight that mindfulness does not affect equally all types of cognitive performances. Task characteristics may be important and their analysis can help to disentangle how mindfulness interferes with cognitive processes.

中文翻译：

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专注呼吸正念练习对注意力、记忆力和情绪的影响：任务特征的重要性

先前的研究表明，长期的正念训练对认知功能和情绪调节有有益的影响，但对于单一的正念练习，尤其是注意力和记忆任务的结果却是喜忧参半。因此，本研究旨在使用标准化测试分析集中呼吸运动 (FB) 对认知表现的影响。46 名健康的本科生被随机分配到 FB 或控制条件。两项认知任务（Toulouse-Pierron Factorial Battery 的集中注意力任务和 Wechsler 记忆量表 III 的逻辑记忆分测验 I）以及情绪评估（正面和负面影响量表）在干预之前和之后实施. 结果显示注意力任务和情绪评估没有显着差异。尽管如此，FB 对记忆任务的性能提升显着超过了控制练习。研究结果强调，正念并不同样影响所有类型的认知表现。任务特征可能很重要，它们的分析有助于解开正念如何干扰认知过程。