Meditation and the startle response: a case study.
Robert W. Levenson, Paul Ekman, Matthieu Ricard
Emotion April 16, 2012 DOI: 10.1037/a0027472 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Single-subject experimental design Case report Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 1 |
| Population | One Buddhist monk with approximately 40 years of meditation experience, compared with 12 age-matched male controls |
| Interventions | Open presence meditation Focused meditation |
| Duration | 24 trials, with each condition repeated 6 times |
| Topics | Buddhism Meditation |
| Keywords | Humans Acoustic stimulation Cognition Attention Galvanic skin response Heart rate Aged Male Reflex, startle |
| Key findings | Both open-presence and focused meditation produced smaller physiological and facial responses to an acoustic startle than a distraction condition, and open-presence meditation produced smaller responses than focused meditation. In the unanticipated condition, most responses of the highly experienced meditator did not differ from those of 12 age-matched male controls. |
Abstract
The effects of two kinds of meditation (open presence and focused) on the facial and physiological aspects of the defensive response to an aversive startle stimulus were studied in a Buddhist monk with approximately 40 years of meditation experience. The participant was exposed to a 115-db, 100-ms acoustic startle stimulus under the 2 meditation conditions, a distraction condition (to control for cognitive and attentional load) and an unanticipated condition (startle presented without warning or instruction). A completely counterbalanced 24-trial, single-subject design was used, with each condition repeated 6 times. Most aspects of the participant's responses in the unanticipated condition did not differ from those of a comparison group of 12 age-matched male controls. Both kinds of meditation produced physiological and facial responses to the startle that were smaller than in the distraction condition. Within meditation conditions, open presence meditation produced smaller physiological and facial responses than focused meditation. These results from a single highly expert meditator indicate that these 2 kinds of meditation can differentially alter the magnitude of a primitive defensive response.
Comparable studies
Other experimental studies on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| The benefits of being present: Mindfulness and its role in psychological well-being. Cancer patients (clinical intervention study) | 2003 | Mixed methods: scale development, correlational, quasi-experimental, laboratory, experience-sampling, and clinical intervention study | |
| Loving-kindness meditation increases social connectedness. | 2008 | Controlled laboratory experiment | |
| Mindfulness and mind-wandering: Finding convergence through opposing constructs. | 2012 | Two studies: correlational study and experimental study | |
| Mental Training Enhances Attentional Stability: Neural and Behavioral Evidence | 2009 | Experimental study | |
| Mindfulness meditation and substance use in an incarcerated population. Incarcerated population | 2006 | Quasi-experimental with treatment-as-usual control condition |
Citations in the library
Cited by 21
- Self-awareness, self-regulation, and self-transcendence (S-ART): a framework for understanding the neurobiological mechanisms of mindfulness Frontiers in Human Neuroscience 2012
- From many to (n)one: Meditation and the plasticity of the predictive mind. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews September 1, 2021
- The contemplative exercise through the lenses of predictive processing: A promising approach. Progress in Brain Research 2019
- Differential effects of non-dual and focused attention meditations on the formation of automatic perceptual habits in expert practitioners Neuropsychologia July 21, 2018
- Cessations of consciousness in meditation: Advancing a scientific understanding of nirodha samāpatti. Progress in Brain Research 2023
and 16 more in the library
Cites 10
- Alterations in Brain and Immune Function Produced by Mindfulness Meditation Psychosomatic Medicine July 1, 2003
- Open hearts build lives: Positive emotions, induced through loving-kindness meditation, build consequential personal resources. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology October 27, 2008
- The meeting of meditative disciplines and western psychology: A mutually enriching dialogue. American Psychologist 2006
- Investigation of mindfulness meditation practitioners with voxel-based morphometry Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience December 3, 2007
- Buddhist and Psychological Perspectives on Emotions and Well-Being Current Directions in Psychological Science April 1, 2005
and 5 more in the library