State-trait influences of Vipassana meditation practice on P3 EEG dynamics.
Ratna Jyothi Kakumanu, Ajay Kumar Nair, Arun Sasidharan, John P John, Seema Mehrotra, Ravindra Panth, Bindu M Kutty
Progress in Brain Research 2019 DOI: 10.1016/bs.pbr.2018.10.027 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Observational cohort Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 59 |
| Population | Experienced Vipassana practitioners (novices, seniors, teachers) |
| Intervention | Vipassana meditation |
| Topics | Meditation Neuroplasticity |
| Keywords | Attention Cognition Event-related potentials Proficiency |
| Key findings | More proficient meditators showed reduced theta synchrony, enhanced alpha desynchronization, and lesser theta-alpha coherence during a cognitive task after meditation, indicating graded state-trait influences of meditation on EEG dynamics. |
Abstract
Several studies have demonstrated that meditation naïve subjects can, in just a few weeks, become proficient enough in meditation to show cognitive improvements accompanied with functional and structural changes in the brain. Would long-term exposure to qualitatively different levels of meditative training bring about differences in cognitive processing? Would meditation prior to task performance help separate out these differences? Could the nature of the task influence the findings related to cognitive enhancements? To address these questions, we evaluated cognitive functions in three groups of experienced Vipassana practitioners (Novices: n=22, Mean±SD meditation experience=989±595h; Senior practitioners: 21, 10,510±5313; Teachers: 16, 14,648±9623) who differed in terms of duration and quality of meditative practice. Specifically, we employed "ANGEL" a gamified multilevel oddball paradigm, to assess P3 event-related potentials (ERPs) and associated EEG dynamics-power spectra, event related spectral perturbations (ERSP) and inter-trial coherence (ITC). In order to elicit the state-trait influences of meditation, the cognitive task was performed after the participants had undergone an hour long traditional meditation session. All participants could perform the task well and the gross ERP waveforms were similar for the three groups. As hypothesized, we found distinct state-trait influences of meditation leading to graded differences in P3 EEG dynamics. Specifically, we found reduced theta synchrony, enhanced alpha de-synchrony and lesser theta-alpha coherence in the more proficient meditators. Post hoc analyses revealed several differences between the novice and teacher groups but not as many between novice and seniors suggesting that the senior meditators formed an intermediate group. Our study demonstrates that both quantity and quality of meditation influence EEG dynamics during cognitive processing and that meditation prior to a task can provide additional state-trait effects involved in meeting the specific cognitive demands.
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 11
- Interpretability of Spatiotemporal Dynamics of the Brain Processes Followed by Mindfulness Intervention in a Brain-Inspired Spiking Neural Network Architecture Sensors December 21, 2020
- Intrinsic neural timescales exhibit different lengths in distinct meditation techniques. Neuroimage August 15, 2024
- A systematic review and activation likelihood estimation meta-analysis of fMRI studies on arousing or wake-promoting effects in Buddhist meditation Frontiers in Psychology October 27, 2023
- Half a Century of Research for Mind–Body Interventions: A Scientometric Analysis Mindfulness May 17, 2025
- The meditative brain: State and trait changes in harmonic complexity for long-term mindfulness meditators bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) November 17, 2023
and 6 more in the library
Cites 29
- Long-term meditators self-induce high-amplitude gamma synchrony during mental practice Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences November 8, 2004
- Neural correlates of attentional expertise in long-term meditation practitioners Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences June 28, 2007
- Regulation of the Neural Circuitry of Emotion by Compassion Meditation: Effects of Meditative Expertise PLoS One March 25, 2008
- The psychological effects of meditation: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin May 14, 2012
- Conceptual and methodological issues in research on mindfulness and meditation. American Psychologist October 1, 2015
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