Mindfulness training enhances face working memory: evidence from the drift-diffusion model

The effect of mindfulness training on working memory is unclear. The current study sought to confirm the impact of mindfulness training on working memory for facial stimuli and to reveal the cognitive mechanisms underlying this effect by using drift-diffusion modeling (DDM). Using a delayed match-to-sample task with facial stimuli, we measured memory performance across five emotional categories (happy, sad, fearful, angry, neutral). Sixty participants received five-week emotion-targeted mindfulness training versus 60 waitlist controls. Assessments pre-training, post-training, and at one-month follow-up revealed significantly improved memory accuracy for all emotions except fear, with the effects persisting for one month. More importantly, drift-diffusion modeling showed increased drift rates across emotional categories post-training. Furthermore, accuracy improvements strongly correlated with drift rate enhancements within each emotion category. These findings demonstrate that mindfulness training induces lasting improvements in both accuracy and processing efficiency of visual working memory, independent of facial emotions, clarifying its cognitive mechanisms.