Resting Brain Activity Related to Dispositional Mindfulness: a PET Study.
Martin Gartenschläger, Mathias Schreckenberger, Hans-Georg Buchholz, Iris Reiner, Manfred E Beutel, Julia Adler, Matthias Michal
Mindfulness 2017 DOI: 10.1007/s12671-017-0677-2 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Observational cohort Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 32 |
| Population | Persons with mental disorders and healthy controls |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Keywords | Default mode Fluorine-18-Fdg PET Precuneus Self |
| Key findings | Dispositional mindfulness is positively associated with resting glucose metabolism in the superior parietal lobule and left precuneus, and inversely associated with metabolism in the left inferior frontal orbital gyrus and bilateral anterior thalamus. |
Abstract
Mindfulness denotes a state of consciousness characterized by receptive attention to and awareness of present events and experiences. As a personality trait, it constitutes the ability to become aware of mental activities such as sensations, images, feelings, and thoughts, and to disengage from judgment, conditioned emotions, and their cognitive processing or automatic inhibition. Default brain activity reflects the stream of consciousness and sense of self at rest. Analysis of brain activity at rest in persons with mindfulness propensity may help to elucidate the neurophysiological basis of this important mental trait. The sample consisted of 32 persons-23 with mental disorders and 9 healthy controls. Dispositional mindfulness (DM) was operationalized by Mindful Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS). Brain activity at rest with eyes closed was assessed by fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (F-18-FDG PET). After adjustment for depression, anxiety, age and years of education, resting glucose metabolism in superior parietal lobule and left precuneus/Brodmann area (BA) 7 was positively associated with DM. Activity of the left inferior frontal orbital gyrus (BA 47) and bilateral anterior thalamus were inversely associated with DM. DM appears to be associated with increased metabolic activity in some core area of the default mode network (DMN) and areas connected to the DMN, such as BA 7, hosting sense of self functions. Hypometabolism on the other hand was found in some nodes connected to the DMN, such as left inferior frontal orbital gyrus and bilateral thalamus, commonly related to functions of memory retrieval, decision making, or outward attention.
Comparable studies
Other observational and cohort studies on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Using Self-Report Assessment Methods to Explore Facets of Mindfulness Undergraduate students | 2006 | Observational cohort | |
| Effectiveness of a meditation-based stress reduction program in the treatment of anxiety disorders Patients with generalized anxiety disorder or panic disorder with or without agoraphobia | 1992 | Observational cohort | n = 22 |
| Meditation experience is associated with increased cortical thickness Participants with extensive Insight meditation experience and matched controls | 2005 | Observational cohort | n = 20 |
| Meditation experience is associated with differences in default mode network activity and connectivity Experienced meditators and matched meditation-naive controls | 2011 | Observational cohort | |
| Long-term meditators self-induce high-amplitude gamma synchrony during mental practice Long-term Buddhist practitioners and controls | 2004 | Observational cohort |
Citations in the library
Cited by 3
- Associations of thalamocortical networks with reduced mindfulness in alcohol use disorder. Frontiers in Psychiatry July 6, 2023
- There Is More to Mindfulness Than Emotion Regulation: A Study on Brain Structural Networks Frontiers in Psychology April 1, 2021
- Long-term Chinese calligraphic handwriting reshapes the posterior cingulate cortex: A VBM study. PLoS One 2019
Cites 16
- The benefits of being present: Mindfulness and its role in psychological well-being. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 2003
- Meditation experience is associated with increased cortical thickness Neuroreport November 7, 2005
- Default Mode Network Activity and Connectivity in Psychopathology Annual Review of Clinical Psychology March 29, 2012
- A systematic review of neurobiological and clinical features of mindfulness meditations Psychological Medicine November 27, 2009
- The Mindful Brain and Emotion Regulation in Mood Disorders The Canadian Journal of Psychiatry February 1, 2012
and 11 more in the library