Silence-related experiences during meditation are linked to changes in brain structure and reduced attentional effort. In a study of Quadrato Motor Training (QMT), participants who reported increased silence-related experiences after six weeks of practice also showed decreased attentional effort and increased fractional anisotropy in the left uncinate fasciculus, a white-matter tract. The findings suggest that silence in meditation involves specific neuroanatomical changes and may reduce the cognitive effort required to maintain attention.
Immersion in the OVO Whole-Body Perceptual Deprivation chamber, a homogeneous sensory environment, consistently produces positively connotated, bodily-oriented, and cognitively dedifferentiated subjective states in most people. Semi-structured interviews with 32 participants, analyzed by three independent evaluators, showed significant consensus on experiences such as softened boundaries across time and sensory modalities. These subjective findings align with prior electrophysiological results that reported increased delta and beta activity in the left inferior frontal cortex and left insula during immersion.
Empathy, the ability to infer others' emotions, is linked to bodily sensations from the autonomic nervous system. A survey of 581 participants found that people who meditate score higher on empathy than non-meditators. Lower autonomic reactivity in organs above the diaphragm was associated with higher empathy. Among participants with high autonomic reactivity, empathy was positively linked to interoceptive components of abstract concepts. The results suggest that meditation and low autonomic reactivity relate to empathy, possibly by downregulating autonomic responses.
A movement meditation called Quadrato Motor Training (QMT) reduced levels of the proinflammatory cytokine interleukin-1beta (IL-1β) and increased creativity in healthy adults. Thirty participants were divided into a QMT group that practiced for two months and a passive control group. Salivary IL-1β protein decreased and performance on the Alternate Uses Task, a measure of creativity, improved in the QMT group compared with controls. The findings suggest that non-pharmacological mind-body practices can reduce inflammation and support cognitive function.