There Is More to Mindfulness Than Emotion Regulation: A Study on Brain Structural Networks
Frontiers in Psychology April 1, 2021 Sabina Baltruschat, Antonio Cándido, Antonio Maldonado et al.
Dispositional mindfulness and emotion regulation are closely linked and both improve with long-term meditation practice, yet the neural basis of dispositional mindfulness independent of emotion regulation had not been identified. Using a novel brain structural network analysis, researchers examined relationships between structural networks and dispositional mindfulness measured by the Mindfulness Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS) and Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ), while accounting for emotion regulation difficulties. Different brain regions were associated with each scale: MAAS scores related to bilateral hippocampus and parahippocampal and fusiform gyri; FFMQ total scores related to right insula, bilateral amygdala, and the same gyri. These results suggest that the two instruments measure different characteristics involving different brain systems, though areas linked to emotional reactivity and semantic processing generally relate to dispositional mindfulness regardless of instrument.