A newly developed German questionnaire called the Inventory of Secular/Spiritual Wakefulness (WAKE-16) was tested in 36 expert meditators who primarily meditate in silence and 36 demographically matched non-meditators. Meditators scored significantly higher on the WAKE-16, indicating the instrument can distinguish between groups and thus has construct validity. Meditators also scored higher on mindfulness subscales of presence and acceptance, as well as on emotion regulation and body-related symbolization of emotions. Among meditators, wakefulness correlated with mindfulness, accepting one's own emotions, and experiencing overwhelming emotions; among non-meditators, only the correlation with accepting one's own emotions was significant. The findings support the WAKE-16 as a valid measure of wakefulness, defined as an expansive, stable state involving transformed vision, identity, and relationship to the world.
A new German-language questionnaire measuring 'wakefulness'—a transformed state of being involving expanded vision, relationship to the world, subjective experience, identity, and outlook—was tested for construct validity. Expert meditators scored significantly higher on the wakefulness inventory than demographically matched non-meditators, supporting the instrument's ability to distinguish between groups. Meditators also scored higher on mindfulness subscales of presence and acceptance, and on emotion regulation and body-related symbolization of emotions. Among meditators, wakefulness correlated positively with mindfulness and accepting one's own emotions, and negatively with experiencing overwhelming emotions. In non-meditators, wakefulness correlated only with accepting one's own emotions.
Meditation alters how the brain integrates auditory beats over time, and these changes are linked to heart and breathing activity. In a pre-post longitudinal study, mindfulness meditators either meditated or listened to a story while heart and breathing were recorded. After meditation, the duration of temporal integration increased for the slowest metronome frequency (3-second intervals). Higher heart-rate variability (RMSSD) during meditation predicted longer integration at the fastest frequency (0.33-second intervals), while higher breathing rate predicted greater integration at 1-second intervals. The findings support the idea that meditation-induced physiological changes shape the temporal integration of sensory events, illustrating the embodiment of mental functioning.