Fig. 5
Schematic conceptual depiction of the factors contributing to mind wandering based on the current results. The pluses indicate positive slopes and the minuses indicate negative slopes. For instance, the arrow from concentration to mind wandering indicates that trying harder to concentrate on current activity is associated with a decrease in mind wandering, whereas the arrow from updating pointing at the arrow from concentration to mind wandering indicates that individuals with higher updating show a more strongly negative slope of concentration on mind wandering (i.e., a moderation). The blue arrow indicates that the relation was observed specifically for stimulus-independent and task-unrelated thoughts (SITUTs), whereas the red arrows indicate that the relations were observed for multiple operationalizations of mind wandering, such as external distractions. EF = executive functioning