Neuromodulation and meditation: A review and synthesis toward promoting well-being and understanding consciousness and brain.
Kilian Abellaneda-Pérez, Ruby M. Potash, Á. Pascual-Leone, Matthew D. Sacchet
Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews August 1, 2024 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2024.105862 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Review Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Meditation |
| Key findings | Non-invasive brain stimulation can causally investigate neural mechanisms of meditation and may boost meditation's behavioral and neural effects, but methodological variations challenge definitive interpretation. |
Abstract
The neuroscience of meditation is providing insight into meditation's beneficial effects on well-being and informing understanding of consciousness. However, further research is needed to explicate mechanisms linking brain activity and meditation. Non-invasive brain stimulation (NIBS) presents a promising approach for causally investigating neural mechanisms of meditation. Prior NIBS-meditation research has predominantly targeted frontal and parietal cortices suggesting that it might be possible to boost the behavioral and neural effects of meditation with NIBS. Moreover, NIBS has revealed distinct neural signatures in long-term meditators. Nonetheless, methodological variations in NIBS-meditation research contributes to challenges for definitive interpretation of previous results. Future NIBS studies should further investigate core substrates of meditation, including specific brain networks and oscillations, and causal neural mechanisms of advanced meditation. Overall, NIBS-meditation research holds promise for enhancing meditation-based interventions in support of well-being and resilience in both non-clinical and clinical populations, and for uncovering the brain-mind mechanisms of meditation and consciousness.
Comparable studies
Other narrative reviews on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mindfulness training as a clinical intervention: A conceptual and empirical review. Clinical populations | 2003 | Review | |
| Mindfulness: Theoretical Foundations and Evidence for its Salutary Effects | 2007 | Review | |
| Mindfulness Interventions | 2016 | Review | |
| Mind the Hype: A Critical Evaluation and Prescriptive Agenda for Research on Mindfulness and Meditation | 2017 | Review | |
| Mindfulness and acceptance: expanding the cognitive-behavioral tradition | 2005 | Review |
Citations in the library
Cited by 29
- Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy in Clinical Practice: A Systematic Review of Neurocognitive Outcomes and Applications for Mental Health and Well-Being. Journal of Clinical Medicine March 3, 2025
- Advanced and long-term meditation and the autonomic nervous system: A review and synthesis. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews June 1, 2025
- Neurophysiological mechanisms of focused attention meditation: A scoping systematic review Imaging Neuroscience 2025
- Mindfulness, cognition, and long-term meditators: Toward a science of advanced meditation. Imaging Neuroscience 2025
- Integrated Phenomenology and Brain Connectivity Demonstrate Changes in Nonlinear Processing in Jhana Advanced Meditation. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience May 14, 2025
and 24 more in the library
Cites 79
- Meditation experience is associated with increased cortical thickness Neuroreport November 7, 2005
- Mind the Hype: A Critical Evaluation and Prescriptive Agenda for Research on Mindfulness and Meditation Perspectives on Psychological Science October 10, 2017
- Meditation experience is associated with differences in default mode network activity and connectivity Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences November 23, 2011
- Long-term meditators self-induce high-amplitude gamma synchrony during mental practice Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences November 8, 2004
- Attending to the present: mindfulness meditation reveals distinct neural modes of self-reference Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience August 13, 2007
and 74 more in the library