Metacognitive Skill Learning as a Mechanism of Advanced Meditation
Brendan Conway-Smith, Ruby M. Potash, Matthew D. Sacchet
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper |
|---|---|
| Topics | Meditation |
| Key points | Proposes that advanced meditation can be understood as a specialized form of metacognitive skill learning in which sustained practice automatizes metacognitive control, reducing reliance on explicit instructions and making practice more effective, fluent, and less effortful. Argues this automatized control is directed toward well-defined phenomenological targets, such as advanced absorption states and insight stages, yielding a testable framework linking cognitive mechanisms, neural findings, and experiential descriptions. |
Abstract
Despite growing interest in advanced meditation, the cognitive mechanisms underlying these capacities remain poorly understood. This paper develops a cognitive account of advanced meditation as a specialized form of metacognitive skill learning. Drawing on classic accounts of skill acquisition, we propose the automatization of metacognitive control as a mechanism through which meditative skill develops. Through sustained practice, practitioners become less reliant on explicit instructions as metacognitive control becomes increasingly automatic. This shift may allow meditative practice to become more effective, fluent, and less effortful. The resulting metacognitive control is directed toward well-defined phenomenological targets, including advanced absorption states and insight stages. By connecting cognitive mechanisms with neural findings and experiential descriptions, the account offers a testable framework for explaining the development of advanced meditative capacities.
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 |