Psychosomatic Medicine
April 11, 2018
Gunes Sevinc, Britta K. Hölzel, Javeria A. Hashmi et al.
65 citations
Two meditation-based stress reduction programs—Relaxation Response (RR) and Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR)—both reduced stress, with MBSR showing a larger effect (Cohen's d = 1.02) than RR (Cohen's d = 0.50). Both programs activated shared neural pathways between ventromedial prefrontal regions and supplementary motor areas. However, the RR bodyscan meditation, which emphasizes physical relaxation, showed stronger connectivity between the right inferior frontal gyrus (involved in inhibition and control) and supplementary motor areas. The MBSR program, which emphasizes mindful awareness without explicit relaxation, uniquely improved self-compassion and rumination and showed connectivity between the right anterior insula (sensory awareness and salience) and pregenual anterior cingulate during meditation. These distinct neural patterns align with each program's theoretical focus.
Spirituality in Clinical Practice
August 2, 2018
Jonathan Greenberg, Tanya Datta, Benjamin G. Shapero et al.
37 citations
Depression is linked to high levels of mind-wandering and low self-compassion. In a depressed sample, mind-wandering was associated with higher depressive symptoms only among those with low self-compassion. Self-compassion predicted improvement in depression. An eight-week Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) program increased self-compassion and reduced mind-wandering compared to a treatment-as-usual control group. Longitudinally, increases in mind-wandering were linked to increases in depressive symptoms only among those whose self-compassion decreased. Self-compassion can protect against the harmful effects of mind-wandering in depression, and MBCT effectively targets both protective and risk factors for depression.
Brain and Behavior
September 18, 2020
Gunes Sevinc, Jonathan Greenberg, Britta K. Hölzel et al.
24 citations
Mindfulness meditation training is linked to structural changes in the hippocampus, specifically the subiculum, which are associated with reduced connectivity between the hippocampus and lateral occipital regions during the retrieval of extinguished fear memories. This reduced connectivity correlates with decreases in self-reported anxiety after mindfulness training. The findings suggest that the subiculum plays a key role in regulating interactions with contextual cues during memory retrieval, and that mindfulness training may foster resilience by altering these brain circuits.
November 12, 2018
Gunes Sevinc, Sara W. Lazar
8 citations
Mindfulness meditation, often studied for its benefits to individual well-being and cognitive skills like attention and memory, may also enhance moral behavior. In Buddhist tradition, mindfulness cultivates wholesome actions and prosocial qualities. This article proposes that increased awareness of physiological and mental states after mindfulness training could change how morally relevant information is processed, promoting moral action. It summarizes neuroscientific research on moral cognition and offers a theoretical and experimental framework for studying the link between mindfulness and ethical behavior.
Neuroscience Letters
May 23, 2025
Diane Joss, Gunes Sevinc, John W. Denninger et al.
1 citation
Among 94 chronically stressed but otherwise healthy adults randomized to eight weeks of meditation, yoga, or stress education, only the meditation group showed a significant reduction in resting-state functional connectivity between the posterior cingulate cortex and the left hippocampus. Changes in this brain connectivity were correlated with improvements in perceived stress, allostatic load, and anti-inflammatory gene expression, suggesting that meditation's neural effects are closely linked to physical wellness biomarkers. No such changes occurred in the yoga or stress education groups, indicating this neurobiological mechanism may be unique to meditation training.