82 research outputs found
Effects of mindfulness meditation on conscious and non-conscious components of the mind
The aim of the present review is to investigate previous studies concerning the effects of meditation and dispositional mindfulness on conscious and implicit or non-conscious attitudes. First we present a brief perspective on conscious and non-conscious states of mind. Then we introducethefundamentalbasesofmindfulnessmeditation. Third we review studies on dispositional mindfulness and meditation that employed either direct or indirect measures to assess explicit and implicit attitudes. Finally, we briefly present how meditation has been associated with the psychotherapeutic practice of psychoanalysis and, hence, as a therapeutic technique to access the unconscious. Until now, few studies have investigated the impact of meditation on non-conscious states of mind and personality; nevertheless, both scientific studies involving implicit measures and reflections from psychotherapy have underlined the importance of meditation in promoting psychological well-being, leading to de-automatization of automatic patterns of responding and to higher levels of self-awareness
Temperament and Character Effects on Late Adolescents' Well-Being and Emotional-Behavioural Difficulties
Background. Research on adults points to personality as a crucial determinant of well-
being. The present study investigates the question of personality's relation to well-being
and psychosocial adjustment in adolescence.
Methods. We assessed the role of temperament and character (Temperament and
Character Inventory, TCI-125), on psychological well-being (PWB; Psychological Well-
Being scales), subjective well-being (SWB; Positive and Negative Affect, PA and NA,
respectively), and psychosocial adjustment (emotional-behavioural problems measured
by the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire for Adolescents, SDQ-A), in 72 Italian
late adolescents (aged 17.5 0.75). Multiple regressions were conducted to predict
PWB, SWB, and SDQ-A scores using TCI-125 scales as predictors.
Results. Character maturity, and in particular Self-Directedness, had a widespread
protective effect on well-being and psychosocial adjustment, while different strengths
and emotional-behavioural difficulties were associated to specific temperamental
and character traits. For example, Harm-Avoidance and Novelty-Seeking positively
predicted internalized and externalized problems, respectively.
Discussion. The present results suggest the usefulness of continuing to evaluate
temperament and, in particular, character dimensions in investigations focused on
adolescents' well-being and psychosocial functioning, especially in the contexts of
potential interventions aimed at enhancing development of adolescents' character
dimensions at the intrapersonal, interpersonal, and transpersonal levels
The impact of mindfulness meditation on social and moral behavior: Does mindfulness enhance other-oriented motivation or decrease monetary reward salience?
This perspective article provides an overview of the impact of mindfulness
meditation (MM) on social and moral behavior. In mindfulness research,
prosocial behavior has been operationalized as helping behavior, altruistic
redistribution of funds, reparative behavior, or monetary donation. Studies
concerning moral behavior are still scarce. Despite inconsistent evidence,
several studies found a beneficial effect of mindfulness on prosocial outcomes
(i.e., a higher propensity to spend or give away money for the sake of
other individuals). However, since the employed tasks were reward-based,
participants’ decisions also directly affected their own payoff by reducing it.
Crucially, MM also affects self-control circuitry and reduces reward-seeking
behaviors and reward salience by making rewards less tempting. We have
discussed evidence suggesting how challenging it may be to dissociate
the specific weight of enhanced other-oriented motivation from one of
the decreased monetary reward salience in explaining meditators’ behavior.
Future higher-quality studies are needed to address this open issue
Spontaneous eye movements during focused-attention mindfulness meditation
Oculometric measures have been proven to be useful markers of mind-wandering during
visual tasks such as reading. However, little is known about ocular activity during mindfulness
meditation, a mental practice naturally involving mind-wandering episodes. In order to
explore this issue, we extracted closed-eyes ocular movement measurements via a covert
technique (EEG recordings) from expert meditators during two repetitions of a 7-minute
mindfulness meditation session, focusing on the breath, and two repetitions of a 7-minute
instructed mind-wandering task. Power spectral density was estimated on both the vertical
and horizontal components of eye movements. The results show a significantly smaller
average amplitude of eye movements in the delta band (1\u20134 Hz) during mindfulness meditation
than instructed mind-wandering. Moreover, participants\u2019 meditation expertise correlated
significantly with this average amplitude during both tasks, with more experienced meditators
generally moving their eyes less than less experienced meditators. These findings suggest
the potential use of this measure to detect mind-wandering episodes during
mindfulness meditation and to assess meditation performance
Contributions of Neuropsychology to the Study of Ancient Literature
The present work introduces the neuropsychological paradigm as a new approach to studying ancient literature. In the first part of the article, an epistemological framework for the proper use of neuropsychology in relation to ancient literature is presented. The article then discusses neuropsychological methods of studying different human experiences and dimensions already addressed by ancient literatures. The experiences of human encounters with gods among ancient cultures are first considered, through the contributions of Julian Jaynes and Eric R. Dodds. The concepts of right and left in the Bible, and that of soul are then discussed. Ecstatic experience in Paul of Tarsus is also presented, with a particular focus on glossolalia. Neuroscientific differences between mindful and unitive meditative practices are then described referring to ancient Buddhist literature, and finally a brief description of dreams in ancient Greek literature is proposed. Neuropsychology variously enables a more profound understanding of themes characterizing human experiences that ancient literature has already explored; these investigations prove that the collaboration of neuroscience and humanistic studies can return fruitful and interesting results
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