Functional neuroanatomy of meditation: A review and meta-analysis of 78 functional neuroimaging investigations

Meditation is a family of mental practices that encompasses a wide array of techniques employing distinctive mental strategies. We systematically reviewed 78 functional neuroimaging (fMRI and PET) studies of meditation, and used activation likelihood estimation to meta-analyze 257 peak foci from 31 experiments involving 527 participants. We found reliably dissociable patterns of brain activation and deactivation for four common styles of meditation (focused attention, mantra recitation, open monitoring, and compassion/loving-kindness), and suggestive differences for three others (visualization, sense-withdrawal, and non-dual awareness practices). Overall, dissociable activation patterns are congruent with the psychological and behavioral aims of each practice. Some brain areas are recruited consistently across multiple techniques - including insula, pre/supplementary motor cortices, dorsal anterior cingulate cortex, and frontopolar cortex - but convergence is the exception rather than the rule. A preliminary effect-size meta-analysis found medium effects for both activations (d = .59) and deactivations (d = -.74), suggesting potential practical significance. Our meta-analysis supports the neurophysiological dissociability of meditation practices, but also raises many methodological concerns and suggests avenues for future research

The effects of mindfulness and kindness meditation on teacher emotional abilities, compassion, and prosocial behavior

Teachers evidence high rates of occupational burnout and turnover. Accordingly, the present study evaluated the feasibility and acceptability of digital meditation practices for teachers. The effects of digital meditation on teacher affect and mindfulness, and on teacher emotion skills, compassion, and prosocial behavior also were examined. Participants were K-12 teachers from Western Canada (N = 121). Teachers were randomly assigned to mindfulness meditation (MM), kindness meditation (KM), or music relaxation (MR; active control) training for six weeks (approximately one hour a week). Teachers reported the digital MM, KM, and MR practices to be highly engaging, and moderately efficacious and enjoyable. Within-group increases in positive affect (d = 0.42) and mindfulness skills (ds = 0.42–0.45) were found in the MM group. Within-group reductions in negative affect (ds = -0.81, -0.83, -0.89) and stress (ds = -0.54, -0.49, -0.68) were found in the MM, KM, and MR groups, respectively. However, neither MM nor KM improved affect or mindfulness compared to the MR control. Thus, the within-group effects may (to some extent) reflect placebo effects and/or demand characteristics. Regarding the effects of training on emotion skills, compassion, and prosocial behavior, only one finding was observed. KM increased prosocial behavior (decreased altruistic punishment; d = -0.56) compared to MM in an online economic game. From pre-test to post-test KM reduced, whereas MM iatrogenically heightened, altruistic punishment. Exploratory analyses were conducted that also tested the effects of training on emotion skills, compassion, and prosocial behavior in the female subsample (n = 96) (the male subsample was too small – n = 22 – to conduct gender-by-group interactions or male-only analyses). In female teachers, KM promoted prosocial behavior in online economic games: KM versus the MR control increased altruistic giving (d = 0.57), and KM versus MM decreased altruistic punishment (d = -0.77). Overall, the feasibility and acceptability of digital meditation (and music relaxation) practices for teachers was supported. However, the efficacy of digital meditations as tools to foster adaptive teacher social-emotional behavior received limited support. Studies utilizing more intensive interventions that employ longitudinal designs are needed to determine the social-emotional efficacy of digital meditation for educators.Education, Faculty ofEducational and Counselling Psychology, and Special Education (ECPS), Department ofGraduat

The influence of teacher emotion on grading practices: A preliminary look at the evaluation of student writing

The evaluation of student work is a central aspect of the teaching profession that can affect students in significant ways. Although teachers use multiple criteria for assessing student work, it is not yet known if emotions are a factor in their grading decisions as has been found in other instances of professional evaluations. Reason to believe that this might be the case not only comes from emotion-congruent judgment research, but also from the emerging field of teacher emotion research which is beginning to reveal that emotion may be an important element in various teacher cognitions and practices. The present study provides initial evidence that emotions may bias the grades teachers assign to their students, such that positive and negative emotions influence grade assignment in emotion-congruent ways. This research offers empirical contributions to research on emotion and cognition as well as on teacher emotion. © 2013 © 2013 Taylor & Francis