Autobiographical Memory and Mindfulness: a Critical Review with a Systematic Search
Mindfulness May 23, 2022 Evangelina Dominguez, Maria Casagrande, Antonino Raffone 12 citations
Mindfulness training and trait mindfulness influence autobiographical memory by enhancing cognitive, emotional, and self-referential flexibility. This flexibility enables a more balanced retrieval of episodic, semantic, and emotional content, increases memory specificity, and reduces emotional reactivity during recall. The review of 50 studies suggests that mindfulness promotes meta-awareness, acceptance, and the ability to shift from a first- to a third-person self-perspective. These changes may involve reconsolidation of memory traces linked to the self, supported by altered brain activity and connectivity in the default mode, salience, and central executive networks. The findings have implications for clinical conditions like depression and for cognitive neuroscience.