From many to (n)one: Meditation and the plasticity of the predictive mind.
Ruben Laukkonen, Heleen A. Slagter
Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews September 1, 2021 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2021.06.021 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Interventions | open monitoring non-dual) |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Keywords | Attention Consciousness Insight Non-dual awareness Plasticity Predictive brain Predictive processing Sense of self |
| Citations | 183 |
| Key points | Proposes that deconstructive meditation reduces counterfactual temporally deep cognition by disengaging anticipatory processes, placing three meditation styles on a continuum of relinquishing predictive habits, including the predicted self. |
Abstract
How profoundly can humans change their own minds? In this paper we offer a unifying account of deconstructive meditation under the predictive processing view. We start from simple axioms. First, the brain makes predictions based on past experience, both phylogenetic and ontogenetic. Second, deconstructive meditation brings one closer to the here and now by disengaging anticipatory processes. We propose that practicing meditation therefore gradually reduces counterfactual temporally deep cognition, until all conceptual processing falls away, unveiling a state of pure awareness. Our account also places three main styles of meditation (focused attention, open monitoring, and non-dual) on a single continuum, where each technique relinquishes increasingly engrained habits of prediction, including the predicted self. This deconstruction can also permit certain insights by making the above processes available to introspection. Our framework is consistent with the state of empirical and (neuro)phenomenological evidence and illuminates the top-down plasticity of the predictive mind. Experimental rigor, neurophenomenology, and no-report paradigms are needed to further understanding of how meditation affects predictive processing and the self.
Comparable studies
Other theoretical and historical papers on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mindfulness: A proposed operational definition. | 2004 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Mechanisms of mindfulness | 2005 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| How Does Mindfulness Meditation Work? Proposing Mechanisms of Action From a Conceptual and Neural Perspective | 2011 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for depression | 2006 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Self-awareness, self-regulation, and self-transcendence (S-ART): a framework for understanding the neurobiological mechanisms of mindfulness | 2012 | Theoretical or philosophical paper |
Citations in the library
Cited by 120
- Pharmacological, neural, and psychological mechanisms underlying psychedelics: a critical review Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews September 1, 2022
- Towards a computational phenomenology of mental action: modelling meta-awareness and attentional control with deep parametric active inference. Neuroscience of Consciousness 2021
- The (In)flexible self: Psychopathology, mindfulness, and neuroscience. International journal of clinical and health psychology : IJCHP 2023
- Cessations of consciousness in meditation: Advancing a scientific understanding of nirodha samāpatti. Progress in Brain Research 2023
- Investigation of advanced mindfulness meditation "cessation" experiences using EEG spectral analysis in an intensively sampled case study. Neuropsychologia September 28, 2023
and 115 more in the library
Cites 78
- The Brain's Default Mode Network Annual Review of Neuroscience May 4, 2015
- How Does Mindfulness Meditation Work? Proposing Mechanisms of Action From a Conceptual and Neural Perspective Perspectives on Psychological Science October 14, 2011
- Interoceptive inference, emotion, and the embodied self Trends in Cognitive Sciences October 12, 2013
- Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction for Stress Management in Healthy People: A Review and Meta-Analysis The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine May 1, 2009
- Mind the Hype: A Critical Evaluation and Prescriptive Agenda for Research on Mindfulness and Meditation Perspectives on Psychological Science October 10, 2017
and 73 more in the library