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Researchers have found that open monitoring meditation can alter brain activity in a way to improve error recognition.
This type of meditation works on cultivating awareness of feelings, thoughts and sensations as they appear.
The researchers believe that different types of meditation can offer different benefits to the brain.
Co-author Dr Jeff Lin, at Michigan State University, explained the process behind open monitoring meditation.
He said: “Some forms of meditation have you focus on a single object, commonly your breath, but open monitoring meditation is a bit different
“It has you tune inward and pay attention to everything going on in your mind and body.
“The goal is to sit quietly and pay close attention to where the mind travels without getting too caught up in the scenery.”
The study looked at a group of people who had never practised meditation previously.
They were taken through a 20-minute meditation exercise while researchers measured brain activity with an EEG monitor.
“The EEG can measure brain activity at the millisecond level, so we got precise measures of neural activity right after mistakes compared to correct responses,” Lin explained.
“A certain neural signal occurs about half a second after an error called the error positivity, which is linked to conscious error recognition. We found that the strength of this signal is increased in the meditators relative to controls.”
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The meditating group did actually perform any better on tasks, suggesting either that further work is needed to consolidate the gains or that change in brain activity signals something else.
Co-author Jason Moser said: “These findings are a strong demonstration of what just 20 minutes of meditation can do to enhance the brain’s ability to detect and pay attention to mistakes.
“It makes us feel more confident in what mindfulness meditation might really be capable of for performance and daily functioning right there in the moment.”
There has been growing interest in meditation as a form of self care, but limited verified research on the benefits.
Dr Lin said: “People’s interest in meditation and mindfulness is outpacing what science can prove in terms of effects and benefits but it’s amazing to me that we were able to see how one session of a guided meditation can produce changes to brain activity in non-meditators.
“It’s great to see the public’s enthusiasm for mindfulness, but there’s still plenty of work from a scientific perspective to be done to understand the benefits it can have, and equally importantly, how it actually works.
“It’s time we start looking at it through a more rigorous lens.”
Dr Lin’s later research on meditation has also revealed important information about how and when to do it.
Meditating while drowsy or sleepy can block the positive effects that it offers.
When conducted right, meditation can be a useful tool in managing mental and emotional health.
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