TY - JOUR
T1 - On mind wandering, attention, brain networks, and meditation
AU - Sood, Amit
AU - Jones, David T.
N1 - Funding Information:
This work is supported by a generous gift from Terrance D. and Judith A. Paul.
Copyright:
Copyright 2014 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.
PY - 2013/5
Y1 - 2013/5
N2 - Human attention selectively focuses on aspects of experience that are threatening, pleasant, or novel. The physical threats of the ancient times have largely been replaced by chronic psychological worries and hurts. The mind gets drawn to these worries and hurts, mostly in the domain of the past and future, leading to mind wandering. In the brain, a network of neurons called the default mode network has been associated with mind wandering. Abnormal activity in the default mode network may predispose to depression, anxiety, attention deficit, and posttraumatic stress disorder. Several studies show that meditation can reverse some of these abnormalities, producing salutary functional and structural changes in the brain. This narrative review presents a mechanistic understanding of meditation in the context of recent advances in neurosciences about mind wandering, attention, and the brain networks.
AB - Human attention selectively focuses on aspects of experience that are threatening, pleasant, or novel. The physical threats of the ancient times have largely been replaced by chronic psychological worries and hurts. The mind gets drawn to these worries and hurts, mostly in the domain of the past and future, leading to mind wandering. In the brain, a network of neurons called the default mode network has been associated with mind wandering. Abnormal activity in the default mode network may predispose to depression, anxiety, attention deficit, and posttraumatic stress disorder. Several studies show that meditation can reverse some of these abnormalities, producing salutary functional and structural changes in the brain. This narrative review presents a mechanistic understanding of meditation in the context of recent advances in neurosciences about mind wandering, attention, and the brain networks.
KW - Meditation
KW - attention
KW - default network
KW - mind wandering
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U2 - 10.1016/j.explore.2013.02.005
DO - 10.1016/j.explore.2013.02.005
M3 - Review article
C2 - 23643368
AN - SCOPUS:84877290681
SN - 1550-8307
VL - 9
SP - 136
EP - 141
JO - Explore: The Journal of Science and Healing
JF - Explore: The Journal of Science and Healing
IS - 3
ER -