Positive Neuroscience: Comparing the Neural Correlates of Meditation and Creative Flow

A content analysis of 21st-century neuroscientific literature on meditation and creative flow reveals overlapping neural mechanisms that may characterize the flourishing human brain. Both states show increased activity in the VLPFC, DLPFC, and parietal regions, enhancing emotional and attentional regulation. Aligned deactivations occur in the amygdala and default mode network (including mPFC and PCC), along with increased theta and alpha oscillations and an inverse relationship between the default mode and central executive networks. These patterns suggest that enhanced emotional and attentional processing underlies mental wellbeing, pointing toward future research in positive neuroscience.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Positive neuroscience focuses on the flourishing and optimized human brain. Despite this optimization being a result of higher conscious states, often caused by meditation or creative flow, the neuroscience field lacks research comparing these two unique brain states. Therefore, through an exploratory content analysis, this research will reveal what neural mechanisms can potentially characterize the flourishing human brain by comparing 21st century, neuroscientific literature on meditation and creative flow. This paper’s findings have indicated compelling alignment for increased activity in the VLPFC, DLPFC, and parietal regions, which altogether enhance emotional and attentional regulation. Aligned deactivations of the AMY and DMN (including the mPFC and PCC), increased activity in theta and alpha oscillations, and the inverse relationship between the DMN and CEN also corroborate the potential trend of increased emotional and attentional processing. Despite some limitations, by extracting the neuroscientific results from empirical work on both conscious states and comparing their respective neural correlates, these potential trends implicate the significance of emotional and attentional regulation regarding mental wellbeing, and a more-informed direction for future investigations exploring positive neuroscience.