The Fusion Confusion: Mindfulness, Neuroticism, and Cognitive Fusion Tell the Same Story

This comment offers a cautious interpretation of Heppt et al. (2025, Scientific Reports), who argue that mindfulness meditation relates to lower neuroticism via mindfulness and cognitive fusion. We suggest that conclusions about the pathway mindfulness meditation to mindfulness to cognitive fusion to neuroticism are not justified and may mislead research and practice. Two major issues are highlighted: the key constructs are conceptually and empirically too similar to be distinguished, and causal claims are drawn from cross sectional mediation analyses. In Heppt et al.’s data, correlations among mindfulness, cognitive fusion, and neuroticism are exceptionally high, indicating substantial overlap and possible redundancy rather than a meaningful mechanism.