Brain Structure and Functional Connectivity Correlate with Psychosocial Development in Contemplative Practitioners and Controls
Omar Singleton, Max Newlon, Andres Fossas, Beena Sharma, S. Cook-greuter, S. Lazar
Brain Science May 30, 2021 Peer reviewed DOI: 10.3390/brainsci11060728 via Semantic Scholar
Summary
Contemplative practitioners—long-term meditators and yoga practitioners—show higher maturity development than matched controls. Maturity development correlates with cortical thickness in the posterior cingulate. A brain network involved in theory of mind, narrative, and self-referential processing, including the posterior cingulate cortex, dorsomedial prefrontal cortex, temporoparietal junction, and inferior frontal cortex, is identified as a primary neural correlate.
Study at a glance
| Design | observational cohort |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 46 |
| Population | long-term meditators, long-term yoga practitioners, and demographically matched controls |
| Key finding | Contemplative practitioners possess higher maturity development compared to a matched control group, and maturity development correlates with cortical thickness in the posterior cingulate. |
Abstract
Jane Loevinger’s theory of adult development, termed ego development (1966) and more recently maturity development, provides a useful framework for understanding the development of the self throughout the lifespan. However, few studies have investigated its neural correlates. In the present study, we use structural and functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to investigate the neural correlates of maturity development in contemplative practitioners and controls. Since traits possessed by individuals with higher levels of maturity development are similar to those attributed to individuals at advanced stages of contemplative practice, we chose to investigate levels of maturity development in meditation practitioners as well as matched controls. We used the Maturity Assessment Profile (MAP) to measure maturity development in a mixed sample of participants composed of 14 long-term meditators, 16 long-term yoga practitioners, and 16 demographically matched controls. We investigated the relationship between contemplative practice and maturity development with behavioral, seed-based resting state functional connectivity, and cortical thickness analyses. The results of this study indicate that contemplative practitioners possess higher maturity development compared to a matched control group, and in addition, maturity development correlates with cortical thickness in the posterior cingulate. Furthermore, we identify a brain network implicated in theory of mind, narrative, and self-referential processing, comprising the posterior cingulate cortex, dorsomedial prefrontal cortex, temporoparietal junction, and inferior frontal cortex, as a primary neural correlate.