Frontiers in Human Neuroscience
July 4, 2016
Michael David Mrazek, Benjamin W. Mooneyham, Kaita Lepore Mrazek et al.
Scientific understanding of how much the adult brain can be shaped by experience requires examination of how multiple influences combine to elicit cognitive, affective, and neural plasticity. Using an intensive multifaceted intervention, we discovered that substantial and enduring improvements can occur in parallel across multiple cognitive and neuroimaging measures in healthy young adults. The...
Frontiers in Psychology
July 4, 2016
Yung-Jong Eshiah
84 citations
The maintenance/strength of self is a very core concept in Western psychology and is particularly relevant to egoism, a process that draws on the hedonic principle in pursuit of desires. Contrary to this and based on Buddhism, a nonself-cultivating process aims to minimize or extinguish the self and avoid desires, leading to egolessness or selflessness. The purpose of this paper is to present...
Neuroimage
July 1, 2016
Anselm Doll, Britta K. Hölzel, Satja Mulej Bratec et al.
Mindfulness practice is beneficial for emotion regulation; however, the neural mechanisms underlying this effect are poorly understood. The current study focuses on effects of attention-to-breath (ATB) as a basic mindfulness practice on aversive emotions at behavioral and brain levels. A key finding across different emotion regulation strategies is the modulation of amygdala and prefrontal...
Medical education online
June 8, 2016
Christine Runyan, Judith A Savageau, Stacy Potts et al.
Background: Up to 60% of practicing physicians report symptoms of burnout, which often peak during residency. Residency is also a relevant time for habits of self-care and resiliency to be emphasized. A growing literature underscores the importance of this; however, evidence about effective burnout prevention curriculum during residency remains limited. Objectives: The purpose of this project...
Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback
June 1, 2016
Bethany Butzer, Khalique Ahmed, Sat Bir S Khalsa
Although yoga has been shown to be a viable technique for improving the performance of the mind and body, little attention has been directed to studying the relationship between yoga and the psychological states of flow and mindfulness. Musicians enrolled in a 2-month fellowship program in 2005, 2006 and 2007 were invited to participate in a yoga and meditation program. Fellows not...
International Review of Psychiatry
June 2016
Ramajayam Govindaraj, Sneha Karmani, Shivarama Varambally et al.
Yoga is a multifaceted spiritual tool with enhanced health and well-being as one of its positive effects. The components of yoga which are very commonly applied for health benefits are asanas (physical postures), pranayama (regulated breathing) and meditation. In the context of asanas, yoga resembles more of a physical exercise, which may lead to the perception that yoga is another kind of...
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
June 1, 2016
Frederick Travis
This paper draws from three different bodies of research to discuss the hypothesis that age-appropriate experiences enhance brain and cognitive development throughout the life span. These age-appropriate experiences could be considered as the drivers of development at each age, including drivers to foster development beyond adult abstract thinking, as described in Piaget's formal operational...
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
June 1, 2016
Joseph J. Loizzo
Meditation research has begun to clarify the brain effects and mechanisms of contemplative practices while generating a range of typologies and explanatory models to guide further study. This comparative review explores a neglected area relevant to current research: the validity of a traditional central nervous system (CNS) model that coevolved with the practices most studied today and that...
Journal of Youth and Adolescence
May 31, 2016
Bethany Butzer, Amanda LoRusso, Sunny H Shin et al.
Adolescence is a key developmental period for preventing substance use initiation, however prevention programs solely providing educational information about the dangers of substance use rarely change adolescent substance use behaviors. Recent research suggests that mind-body practices such as yoga may have beneficial effects on several substance use risk factors, and that these practices may...
International Journal of Health Promotion and Education
May 3, 2016
Scott Hoye, Svathi Reddy
6 citations
Trance states have long been used within a healing context in India. The use of chant, evocation of trance through ritual, and altered states achieved through meditation has been a means for self-realization, psychological well-being, and increasing health. Indigenous psychologies have elucidated various types of states of consciousness. Folk healing traditions often utilize trance as a means...