Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania found that practicing even small doses of daily meditation may improve focus and performance. Meditation, according to Penn neuroscientists Amishi Jha and Michael Baime, director of Penn's Stress Management Program, is an active process that literally changes the way the brain works. Their study was the first to examine how meditation may modify the three subcomponents of attention, including the ability to prioritize and manage tasks and goals, the ability to voluntarily focus on specific information and the ability to stay alert to the environment.
Researchers found that even for those new to the practice, meditation enhanced performance and the ability to focus attention. Performance-based measures of cognitive function demonstrated improvements in a matter of weeks. The study, published in the journal Cognitive, Affective, & Behavioral Neuroscience, suggests a new, non-medical means for improving focus and cognitive ability among disparate populations and has implications for workplace performance and learning.
