Mindfulness-induced selflessness: a MEG neurophenomenological study.
Yair Dor-Ziderman, Aviva Berkovich-Ohana, Joseph Glicksohn, Abraham Goldstein
Frontiers in Human Neuroscience 2013 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2013.00582 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Neurophenomenological study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 12 |
| Population | Long-term mindfulness meditators |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Keywords | Meg Beta frequency band Mindfulness meditation Minimal self Narrative self Neurophenomenology Self-awareness |
| Citations | 207 |
| Key points | Attenuation of narrative self-awareness involves frontal gamma-band power decreases, attenuation of minimal self-awareness involves beta-band decreases in a network including ventral medial prefrontal and parietal regions, and the experience of selflessness is linked to beta-band decreases in the right inferior parietal lobule. |
Abstract
Contemporary philosophical and neurocognitive studies of the self have dissociated two distinct types of self-awareness: a "narrative" self-awareness (NS) weaving together episodic memory, future planning and self-evaluation into a coherent self-narrative and identity, and a "minimal" self-awareness (MS) focused on present momentary experience and closely tied to the sense of agency and ownership. Long-term Buddhist meditation practice aims at realization of a "selfless" mode of awareness (SL), where identification with a static sense of self is replaced by identification with the phenomenon of experiencing itself. NS-mediating mechanisms have been explored by neuroimaging, mainly fMRI, implicating prefrontal midline structures, but MS processes are not well characterized and SL even less so. To this end we tested 12 long-term mindfulness meditators using a neurophenomenological study design, incorporating both magnetoencephalogram (MEG) recordings and first person descriptions. We found that (1) NS attenuation involves extensive frontal, and medial prefrontal gamma band (60-80 Hz) power decreases, consistent with fMRI and intracranial EEG findings; (2) MS attenuation is related to beta-band (13-25 Hz) power decreases in a network that includes ventral medial prefrontal, medial posterior and lateral parietal regions; and (3) the experience of selflessness is linked to attenuation of beta-band activity in the right inferior parietal lobule. These results highlight the role of dissociable frequency-dependent networks in supporting different modes of self-processing, and the utility of combining phenomenology, mindfulness training and electrophysiological neuroimaging for characterizing self-awareness.
Comparable studies
Other qualitative studies on meditation, most cited first.
Citations in the library
Cited by 116
- Mind the Hype: A Critical Evaluation and Prescriptive Agenda for Research on Mindfulness and Meditation Perspectives on Psychological Science October 10, 2017
- The varieties of contemplative experience: A mixed-methods study of meditation-related challenges in Western Buddhists PLoS One May 24, 2017
- Psychedelics, Meditation, and Self-Consciousness Frontiers in Psychology September 4, 2018
- Review of the Neural Oscillations Underlying Meditation Frontiers in Neuroscience March 26, 2018
- Looking for the Self: Phenomenology, Neurophysiology and Philosophical Significance of Drug-induced Ego Dissolution Frontiers in Human Neuroscience May 23, 2017
and 111 more in the library
Cites 31
- A default mode of brain function Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences January 16, 2001
- How Does Mindfulness Meditation Work? Proposing Mechanisms of Action From a Conceptual and Neural Perspective Perspectives on Psychological Science October 14, 2011
- Effectiveness of a meditation-based stress reduction program in the treatment of anxiety disorders American Journal of Psychiatry July 1, 1992
- Experience sampling during fMRI reveals default network and executive system contributions to mind wandering. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences May 26, 2009
- Meditation experience is associated with differences in default mode network activity and connectivity Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences November 23, 2011
and 26 more in the library