A Wireless Accelerometer-Based Body Posture Stability Detection System and Its Application for Meditation Practitioners
Kang-Ming Chang, Sih-Huei Chen, Hsin-Yi Lee, Congo Ching, Chun-Lung Huang
Sensors December 18, 2012 DOI: 10.3390/s121217620 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Observational study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 26 |
| Population | 13 experienced meditators (practice > 3 years) and 13 beginners (practice < 1 year) |
| Duration | 30-minute meditation session |
| Measures | mean motion index, maximum motion index |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Key findings | Experienced meditators had significantly greater posture stability than beginners during meditation, measured by mean and maximum motion indices (p < 0.05). Motion index also varied by leg-crossing posture, with full-lotus showing the least motion, followed by half-lotus, then non-lotus. |
Abstract
The practice of meditation has become an interesting research issue in recent decades. Meditation is known to be beneficial for health improvement and illness reduction and many studies on meditation have been made, from both the physiological and psychological points of view. It is a fundamental requirement of meditation practice to be able to sit without body motion. In this study, a novel body motion monitoring and estimation system has been developed. A wireless tri-axis accelerometer is used to measure body motion. Both a mean and maximum motion index is derived from the square summation of three axes. Two experiments were conducted in this study. The first experiment was to investigate the motion index baseline among three leg-crossing postures. The second experiment was to observe posture dynamics for thirty minute’s meditation. Twenty-six subjects participated in the experiments. In one experiment, thirteen subjects were recruited from an experienced meditation group (meditation experience > 3 years); and the other thirteen subjects were beginners (meditation experience < 1 years). There was a significant posture stability difference between both groups in terms of either mean or maximum parameters (p < 0.05), according to the results of the experiment. Results from another experiment showed that the motion index is different for various postures, such as full-lotus < half-lotus < non-lotus.
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 2
Cites 8
- Long-term meditators self-induce high-amplitude gamma synchrony during mental practice Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences November 8, 2004
- A systematic review of neurobiological and clinical features of mindfulness meditations Psychological Medicine November 27, 2009
- Physiological Effects of Transcendental Meditation Science March 27, 1970
- Mental Training Enhances Attentional Stability: Neural and Behavioral Evidence Journal of Neuroscience October 21, 2009
- A Randomized, Controlled Trial of Meditation for Work Stress, Anxiety and Depressed Mood in Full‐Time Workers Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine 2011
and 3 more in the library