Consciousness, Placebo Effects, and the Therapeutic Allure of Psychoneuroimmunology
Steven Tresker
Perspectives in biology and medicine 2022 DOI: 10.1353/pbm.2022.0000 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Intervention | Mindfulness |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Keywords | Operationalization Psychoneuroimmunology Consciousness Nocebo effect Psychotherapist Placebo Cognitive science Epistemology Immune system Alternative medicine |
| Citations | 4 |
| Key points | Argues that understanding the mechanisms of mindfulness, particularly those related to consciousness and placebo effects, can lend insight into how it can validly be evaluated for effectiveness in modulating the immune system. |
Abstract
Since psychoneuroimmunology's (PNI) inception four decades ago, so-called "mind-body" approaches relying on or inspired by PNI have offered the promise of healing various ailments based on the age-old but metaphysically ambiguous principle that the mind can heal the body. How this principle is operationalized not only reveals limitations of PNI-based mind-body therapies but offers a test kit of possibilities for exploring the conceptual foundations of PNI. This article presents an integrative analysis of the role of consciousness-related phenomena (such as willful intentions, thoughts, beliefs) in their causal efficacy, examining their relationships with placebo effects and the boundaries of immune homeostatic control, as well as their therapeutic prospects. Focusing on mindfulness, the article notes how understanding the mechanisms of mindfulness, specifically those mechanisms related to consciousness and placebo effects, can lend insight into how it can validly be evaluated for effectiveness. While taking care not to overstate the role of consciousness in the control of immune homeostatic functions, this article places consciousness center stage to evaluate how mindfulness might be harnessed to modulate the immune system in a clinically relevant manner.
Comparable studies
Other theoretical and historical papers on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mindfulness: A proposed operational definition. | 2004 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Mechanisms of mindfulness | 2005 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| How Does Mindfulness Meditation Work? Proposing Mechanisms of Action From a Conceptual and Neural Perspective | 2011 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for depression | 2006 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Self-awareness, self-regulation, and self-transcendence (S-ART): a framework for understanding the neurobiological mechanisms of mindfulness | 2012 | Theoretical or philosophical paper |
Citations in the library
Cites 14
- Mindfulness training as a clinical intervention: A conceptual and empirical review. Clinical Psychology Science and Practice 2003
- How Does Mindfulness Meditation Work? Proposing Mechanisms of Action From a Conceptual and Neural Perspective Perspectives on Psychological Science October 14, 2011
- What defines mindfulness-based programs? The warp and the weft Psychological Medicine December 29, 2016
- How Does Mindfulness Training Affect Health? A Mindfulness Stress Buffering Account Current Directions in Psychological Science December 1, 2014
- Evolution of consciousness: Phylogeny, ontogeny, and emergence from general anesthesia Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences June 10, 2013
and 9 more in the library