Reductions in perceived stress following Transcendental Meditation practice are associated with increased brain regional connectivity at rest
Avvenuti, Giulia; Leo, Andrea; Cecchetti, Luca; Franco, Maria Fatima; Travis, Frederick; Caramella, Davide; Bernardi, Giulio; Ricciardi, Emiliano; Pietrini, Pietro (2020). Reductions in perceived stress following Transcendental Meditation practice are associated with increased brain regional connectivity at rest. Brain and Cognition, 139, 105517.
Three-month study of 19 TM participants and 15 controls associated reduced stress/anxiety with changes in resting-state functional brain connectivity. The small preliminary sample does not establish a causal mechanism.
- Year
- 2020
- Journal
- Brain and Cognition
- Publication type
- Journal
- Paper type
- Empirical
- Section
- Physiological Changes
Findings (3)
Psychological Health
TM participants showed reduced perceived stress and anxiety after three months.
Transcendental Meditation · Longitudinal with nonrandomized controls
Electrophysiological
Stress/anxiety changes were associated with functional connectivity changes involving default-mode regions; connectivity with the insula also increased.
Transcendental Meditation · Longitudinal with nonrandomized controls
No structural brain changes were observed in either group.
Transcendental Meditation · Longitudinal with nonrandomized controls