PLoS One
2020
Larissa Lusnig, Ralph Radach, Christina J Mueller et al.
There is ample evidence that meditation can regulate emotions. It is questionable, however, whether meditation can down-regulate sensitivity to emotional experience in high-level cognitive representations such as words. The present study shows that adept Zen meditators rated the emotional valence of (low-arousal) positive and (high- and low-arousal) negative nouns significantly more neutral...
Stress
2020
Bonnie Klimes-Dougan, Li Shen Chong, Ali Samikoglu et al.
Transcendental meditation (TM) is effective in alleviating stress and anxiety and promoting well-being. While the underlying biological mechanisms of TM are not yet fully explored, the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis represents an index providing important clues embodying the stress system cascade. In this pilot study, young adults were randomly assigned to TM training followed by 8...
Frontiers in Psychology
2020
Jesus Montero-Marin, Marta Puebla-Guedea, Paola Herrera-Mercadal et al.
correction
[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2016.01935.].
Frontiers in Psychology
2020
Sabrina Venditti, Loredana Verdone, Anna Reale et al.
Many studies have consistently demonstrated an epigenetic link between environmental stimuli and physiological as well as cognitive responses. Epigenetic mechanisms represent a way to regulate gene activity in real time without modifying the DNA sequence, thus allowing the genome to adapt its functions to changing environmental contexts. Factors such as lifestyle, behavior, and the practice of...
Journal of Pacific Rim Psychology
2020
Yang-Qian Shen, Hui Zhou, Xiao Chen et al.
Meditation is a type of mental training commonly applied in clinical settings and also practiced for general well-being. Brain functional connectivity (FC) patterns associated with meditation have revealed its brain mechanisms. However, the variety of FC methods applied has made it difficult to identify brain communication patterns associated with meditation. Here we carried out a...
Frontiers in Human Neuroscience
2020
Helen Y. Weng, Jarrod A Lewis-Peacock, Frederick M Hecht et al.
9 citations
Meditation practices are often used to cultivate interoception or internally-oriented attention to bodily sensations, which may improve health via cognitive and emotional regulation of bodily signals. However, it remains unclear how meditation impacts internal attention (IA) states due to lack of measurement tools that can objectively assess mental states during meditation practice itself, and...
Frontiers in Psychology
2020
Helen Y. Weng, Mushim P. Ikeda, Jarrod A Lewis-Peacock et al.
Mindfulness and compassion meditation are thought to cultivate prosocial behavior. However, the lack of diverse representation within both scientific and participant populations in contemplative neuroscience may limit generalizability and translation of prior findings. To address these issues, we propose a research framework called Intersectional Neuroscience which adapts research procedures to...
Frontiers in Psychology
2020
Frederick Travis, Jonathan Nash, Niyazi Parim et al.
Early research into meditation, including Transcendental Meditation (TM), relied exclusively on EEG to measure brain activity during meditation practice. Since the advent of neural imaging, MRI, and later fMRI, have dominated this field. Unfortunately, the use of this technology rests on the questionable assumption that lying down in a confining tube while exposed to very loud sounds would not...
HCA Healthcare Journal of Medicine
2020
Haryashpal Bhullar
Description As a psychiatrist in training, I often have the privilege to connect with the unique thoughts and visions patients may be experiencing. The descriptions shared by one patient during my early psychiatry inpatient rotations stuck with me and eventually inspired me to pursue a residency in the field. While interviewing, she expressed a deep spirituality and often finding solace in the...
J Hum Reprod Sci
2020
Ansha Patel, PS. V. N. Sharma, Pratap Kumar
27 citations
Living mindfully helps one gain a deeper understanding into realities of life. It enables people to witness suffering, desire, attachments, and impermanence without any fear, anxiety, anger, or despair. This is considered the hallmark of true psychological insight. As a skill, mindfulness can be inculcated by anyone. Mindfulness helps in attending, getting aware and understanding experiences in...
Elsevier eBooks
2020
M. E. Johnson
5 citations
Background: I’m a philosopher at the Qualia Research Institute (QRI) working on the intersection of neuroscience and phenomenology. As part of this research and to develop my practice, I recently did a 7-day vipassana meditation retreat. The following are some perspectives, models, and hypotheses I had on how some of the ‘Western’ ideas we’re working with at QRI could connect to ‘Eastern’...
International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis
2020
Ian E Wickramasekera
3 citations
Dzogchen meditation has been practiced by Bonpo and Buddhist yogis for at least 1,200 years. Dzogchen utilizes methods of meditation and yogic exercises that are said to help one fully awaken from illusions of self and reality that cause suffering in life. The philosophy and experiential practice of Dzogchen is very similar to hypnosis. Dzogchen techniques utilize hypnotic-like practices of...
Frontiers in Psychology
2020
S Shaun Ho, Yoshio Nakamura, James E. Swain
15 citations
As interpersonal, racial, social, and international conflicts intensify in the world, it is important to safeguard the mental health of individuals affected by them. According to a Buddhist notion "if you want others to be happy, practice compassion; if you want to be happy, practice compassion," compassion practice is an intervention to cultivate conflict-proof well-being. Here, compassion...
Frontiers in Psychology
2020
George Deane, Mark Miller, Sam Wilkinson
88 citations
Disruptions in the ordinary sense of selfhood underpin both pathological and "enlightened" states of consciousness. People suffering from depersonalization can experience the loss of a sense of self as devastating, often accompanied by intense feelings of alienation, fear, and hopelessness. However, for meditative contemplatives from various traditions, "selfless" experiences are highly sought...
Frontiers in Psychology
2020
Andrea Pintimalli, Tania Di Giuseppe, Grazia Serantoni et al.
15 citations
The Sphere Model of Consciousness (SMC) delineates a sphere-shaped matrix that aims to describe subjective experiences using geometric coordinates, in accordance with a neurophenomenological perspective. According to the SMC, an experience of overcoming the habitual self and the conditioning of memories could be placed at the center of the matrix, which can then be called the Place of...
Frontiers in Psychology
2020
Aviva Berkovich-Ohana, Yair Dor-Ziderman, Fynn-Mathis Trautwein et al.
101 citations
This paper is a practical guide to neurophenomenology. Varela's neurophenomenological research program (NRP) aspires to bridge the gap between, and integrate, first-person (1P) and third-person (3P) approaches to understanding the mind. It does so by suggesting a methodological framework allowing these two irreducible phenomenal domains to relate and reciprocally support the investigation of...
Journal of Mental Health Counseling
2020
Babatunde Aideyan, Gina Martin, Eric T. Beeson
19 citations
Breathwork techniques and therapies offer a set of practical interventions for clinical mental health counselors (CMHCs) and are viable methods for integrating physiological sensitivities in treatment by way of the relaxation response. We discuss an organizing framework of breathwork practices and identify three broad categories of breathwork within the field: deep relaxation breathing,...
Data Archiving and Networked Services (DANS)
2020
Uthaug Malin Vedøy
1 citation
The research summarized in this doctoral dissertation sought to investigate the effects of both ayahuasca and 5-MeO-DMT on mental health-related variables such as affect (depression, anxiety and stress), mindfulness related capacities (observing, describing, awareness, non-judgement, and non-reactance), empathy, creativity, and subjective well-being. The main objective motivating this...
Frontiers in Psychology
2020
Zoran Josipovic, Vladimir Miskovic
67 citations
Minimal phenomenal experiences (MPEs) have recently gained attention in the fields of neuroscience and philosophy of mind. They can be thought of as episodes of greatly reduced or even absent phenomenal content together with a reduced level of arousal. It has also been proposed that MPEs are cases of consciousness-as-such. Here, we present a different perspective, that consciousness-as-such is...
Military psychology : the official journal of the Division of Military Psychology, American Psychological Association
2020
Genine P. Smith, Glenn Hartelius
5 citations
A novel understanding and therapeutic approach to the treatment of PTSD-related flashback triggers are described. Triggered responses are conceptualized as the result of latent dissociative structures of neural organization and psychodynamic functioning activated by current events. The dissociative structure - here described as a dissociated ego state (DES) - reflects a fracturing of executive...