Effect of mindfulness meditation on sensory perception and emotional evaluation of mid-air touch on the forearm

Sensory perception and emotional evaluation of a stimulus are deeply interconnected with sensory awareness and attention. Mindfulness meditation is a well-established tool for enhancing attention and awareness, but can this heightened awareness influence how we perceive and emotionally evaluate tactile stimuli? In this work, we investigate how mindfulness meditation influences sensory perception and emotional evaluation of gentle stroking stimuli delivered to the forearm using ultrasound-based mid-air haptics, providing tactile sensations without direct skin contact. Two studies were conducted to assess the effects of mindfulness on (1) perceived intensity, confidence, valence, and arousal in response to simple linear strokes and (2) pattern recognition and emotional evaluation of complex mid-air haptic patterns. Our findings suggest that mindfulness enhances perceived intensity, confidence, and valence ratings, but does not influence arousal ratings. Pattern recognition was challenging for the participants on the forearm leading to poor accuracy but mindfulness still enhances the recognition. These findings highlight the potential of mindfulness-enhanced haptic interactions in digital wellbeing and virtual environments. Future research should explore long-term mindfulness training, multi-sensory integration, and adaptive haptic systems to further optimize affective haptic experiences.