Interactively mediating experiences of mindfulness meditation

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Highlights

  • Sonic Cradle is a persuasive medium designed to encourage mindfulness meditation.

  • Sonic Cradle suspends the body in a dark chamber where respiration influences music.

  • After trying the system, 39 participant interviews were systematically analyzed.

  • Qualitative findings suggest an experience comparable to mindfulness meditation.

  • Technology has the potential to increase wellbeing by introducing people to mindfulness.

Abstract

Sonic Cradle is a human–computer interaction paradigm designed to foster meditative attentional patterns. A user׳s body is suspended comfortably in a completely dark sound chamber while the interaction paradigm subtly encourages them to focus on their breathing to summon and progressively shape an abstract immersive sound experience. Basic interpretive qualitative methods with a purposive sample of 39 participants were used to systematically analyze interview data after a 15-min experience of the system. Results suggest that this persuasive medium can pleasantly encourage an experience comparable to mindfulness by consistently inducing a calm mental clarity and loss of intention. Surprisingly, participants also reported perceptual illusions, feelings of floating, and emotional responses. Mounting evidence implies mindfulness meditation as an effective practice for self-regulation; this study represents a first step toward realizing technology׳s potential to increase wellbeing by introducing people to this psychologically beneficial contemplative practice.

Introduction

“I cease thinking any thoughts about sources and give myself over to hearing. It is very much a bathing in sound, a sensuous luxuriating in pure sound and the spaces between them, in layer upon layer of sounds. Now they are simply what they are, no longer identified, no longer listened for in a straining, reaching sort of way.” – Kabat-Zinn (2005)

For decades, the persuasive power of technology has been exploited for sales and corporate marketing. Recently, we have seen a new crop of persuasive technologies which aim to support their users, helping them exercise, eat healthy, take breaks, quit smoking and more (Chi et al.,, IJsselsteijn et al.,). While these persuasive tools join a large family of healthcare technologies designed primarily to prevent and treat physiological problems, there are relatively fewer systems specifically designed to provide psychological support. Such technologies would not only be critical to help those suffering from mental disorders (prevalence has been observed to be as high as 30% in the United States, with other countries approaching this number; Bijl et al., 2003, Kessler et al., 2005), but also to help anyone identify and self-regulate unhealthy excesses in life (a key virtue in positive psychology; Peterson and Seligman, 2004).

BJ Fogg describes “computers as persuasive media” (juxtaposing them with “computers as persuasive tools” and “computers as social actors”) as systems which provide “a compelling experience that will persuade people to change their attitudes or behaviours” (Fogg, 2003). This is a powerful idea for psychological health and wellbeing, an area where patients suffering from problems like depression, anxiety, and chronic pain need solutions which can fuel lasting changes. If a persuasive medium could offer a compelling experience which influences people׳s general outlook, it could potentially trigger long-term changes in behaviour and routine toward a healthier lifestyle. Since a growing body of evidence suggests that the practices related to mindfulness meditation can have profound effects on stress and psychological problems (Baer, 2003, Bohlmeijer et al., 2010, Fjorback et al., 2011, Kabat-Zinn, 2003), persuasive media for the adoption of contemplative practices have the potential to impact wellbeing.

We have previously published the underlying theory and iterative design process of the Sonic Cradle concept (Vidyarthi et al., 2012). To summarize, the system was designed to experientially motivate and teach mindfulness meditation, a practice known to be effective for stress reduction. The hope was for Sonic Cradle to be a persuasive medium which catalyzes interest and engagement with this vital contemplative practice. In the present article, we will start with a brief recap on theoretical foundations for our work. Next, we will discuss the Sonic Cradle concept with specifics about its intention to promote patterns of awareness and attention characteristic of mindfulness meditation. This will set the stage for a comprehensive investigation of whether subjective experiences in Sonic Cradle align with contemporary literature on mindfulness meditation. We will conclude by discussing future directions for persuasive media aimed at wellbeing with emphasis on orienting this new research agenda towards a positive influence in people׳s lives.

Section snippets

Stress management through mindfulness meditation

As many interactions with technology rely on attention, memory, executive functions, language, problem-solving, perception and decision making, the study of human psychology made – and continues to make – a major impact in the design of new technologies. However, the majority of interaction between psychology and human–computer interaction design is one-directional; most projects exploit an understanding of psychology to improve design. Only recently are we beginning to see research moving in

Methods

One way to investigate Sonic Cradle would be to explore its ability to provide acute stress therapy. Investigating acute effects of the system on stress would involve a combination of psychological questionnaires and physiological measures to determine the system׳s acute effects on stress through parasympathetic nervous system activity and hormone levels. However, findings from such a study could simply be attributable to the combination of music, suspension, and sensory deprivation; there

Qualitative findings (primary themes)

The majority of primary themes produced in analysis of qualitative interview data were common in both those with no meditation experience and those with some meditation experience. This is a striking result, as it implies that these themes were not only identified by all three independent coders, but also that they were strong enough to be revealed twice when data was separated into two mutually exclusive groups. In other words, the majority of our primary themes involve all three independent

Relaxation does not directly imply mindfulness

In an attempt to systematically study the influence of respiratory guidance on people, Zeier (1984) showed that a rudimentary respiratory biofeedback paradigm in the context of background music could generate a reduction in arousal. Schein et al. (2001) showed that respiratory-controlled music which simply matched the rhythm of the current breath directly was able to reduce blood pressure after an 8-week daily program. Further, work studying pain patients׳ use of sensory deprivation tanks which

Conclusions

As a persuasive medium, Sonic Cradle was designed to provide an experience which introduces mindfulness meditation to non-practitioners. In the present study, we adapted basic interpretive qualitative methods and purposive participant sampling as an early investigation into the potential of this new application area for persuasive media. Instead of relying solely on an open-ended subjective presentation of findings, strict criteria systematically ensured that our findings and conclusions

Acknowledgments

We would like to thank the School of Interactive Arts+Technology at Simon Fraser University, NCE-GRAND, NSERC, TED, participants, sound contributors, Dr. Diane Gromala, and reviewers/editors for the International Journal of Human–Computer Studies.

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