Study suggests that adopting a supine or upright posture facilitates ease of performing body-scan meditation for people with hyperactivity tendency

Mindfulness practices have been found to be effective in reducing symptoms of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). However, many people with ADHD may find static meditation techniques challenging. In a recent study, researchers assessed individualized responses of people to sitting in various postures during body-scan meditation. The findings suggest that a slumped posture may reduce the ease of practice, while supine and upright positions may improve the ease of meditation for people with high hyperactivity/impulsivity tendency.

ADHD is a developmental condition of brain with symptoms such as inattention, hyperactivity or impulsivity. People with ADHD lack the ability of self-control and experience anxiety, depression, academic failure, and low self-confidence. These symptoms can be alleviated by a holistic approach such as mindfulness-based stress reduction and mindfulness-based cognitive therapy. These practices encourage patients to pay attention to the present moment with purpose and without judgment. However, these practices involving meditation require sitting in certain postures which can be challenging for patients with high ADHD tendency.

To address this, a group of researchers led by Dr. Ayano Fukuichi of the Research Organization of Open Innovation and Collaboration, Ritsumeikan University (Graduate School of Psychology, Kansai University at the time the study was conducted), Japan, along with Prof. Takafumi Wakita and Prof. Genji Sugamura from Kansai University, Japan examined the ease of meditating in various postures among participants. Their findings were published on 6 August 2024 in Japanese Psychological Research.

“Although mindfulness programs have been devised for patients with ADHD, there are challenges with respect to mindfulness meditation. To overcome this, we explored various postures that can be adopted by both patients with high and low ADHD tendencies for performing meditation easily without the need of special tools,” says Dr. Fukuichi.

In this study, the participants enrolled were divided into four groups combined, hyperactive/impulsive, inattentive, and without ADHD tendencies. They were then asked to perform body-scan meditations with upright, slumped, leaning-back sitting, and supine postures and answer a questionnaire. To assess their responses to various postures during meditation, researchers developed Mindfulness Encouraging Reactions Scale (MERS) and the Mindfulness Discouraging Reactions Scale (MDRS).

The researchers found that participants with hyperactivity/impulsivity tendency found body-scan meditation challenging in a slumped posture and easier to perform in the supine and upright postures. These findings suggest that people with hyperactivity/impulsivity tendency should adopt upright or supine postures for ease of performance of body-scan meditation for sustained care.

In addition, the MERS and MDRS scales developed in the course of the study may help psychiatrists, psychotherapists, and other health professionals decide the best meditation interventions for people with various psychological profiles. Moreover, it can aid in evaluating the feasibility and planning the course of intervention.

“Ours is the first study to develop a scale for assessing the ease or difficulty of practicing mindfulness meditation. Overall, the findings of our study highlight important considerations for practicing meditation for people with ADHD to improve their quality of life,” concludes Dr. Fukuichi.

Title of original paper: What is the most helpful body-scan posture for people with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder tendency?
Journal: Japanese Psychological Research
DOI: 10.1111/jpr.12541

About Dr. Ayano Fukuichi from Ritsumeikan University, Japan

Dr. Ayano Fukuichi is a Senior Researcher at the Research Organization of Open Innovation and Collaboration at Ritsumeikan University, Japan. She received her PhD from Kansai University in 2023. Her primary research interests include educational technology, psychophysics, mindfulness, posture, seiza, and experimental psychology. She is a member of the Japanese Association of Qualitative Psychology, The Japan Association of Applied Psychology, The Japanese Association of Mindfulness, Japan Society for Educational Technology, and The Japanese Psychological Association.

Funding information

This study was supported by JSPS KAKENHI Grants JP20J20444 and JP18K03082.