Hölzel et al. (mindfulness and brain scans) past paper questions Flashcards
Evaluate the study by Holzel et al. (mindfulness and brain scans) in terms of two strengths and two weaknesses. At least one of your evaluation points must be about generalisations. (10)
One strength of Holzel et al was the use of quantitative data. This was done using voxel based morphometry and the analysis of this data is conducted by specialist computer software. This makes the findings more objective as it removes the need for the researcher to interpret grey matter concentration. Moreover, the researcher encouraged the experiments’ participants to incorporate mindfulness into their everyday lives. For example, listening to audio-recorded guided meditation while washing up or walking. This is essential as it indicates that the findings have greater ecological validity meaning similar changes in brain structure should be possible.
However, a weakness in the study is the lack of standardisation between the weekly mindfulness sessions participants chose which exercises they wanted to do each day where and for how long. So people had differences in when, where and for how long they practiced mindfulness which means that the study cannot be replicated or repeated. Thus, will be unable to be tested for reliability. Furthermore, there was a lack of control of confounding variables. For instance, the experimental group had the added benefits of potentially making new friends at their weekly sessions. This makes it hard to identify which factors led to the increased grey matter concentration relative to control group which may affect the studies validity.
