title: Improved emotional stability in experienced meditators with concentrative meditation based on electroencephalography and heart rate variability.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine whether emotional stability distinguishes how experienced and novice meditators react to visual stimuli.
  
  
  METHODS
  PARTICIPANTS practiced concentrative meditation and then responded to visual stimuli while continuing to meditate.
  
  
  METHODS
  Ten experienced and 10 novice meditators responded to sequences of visual stimuli after concentrative meditation.
  
  
  RESULTS
  As predicted, both groups had increased parasympathetic activities during concentrative meditation. Experienced meditators had increased low-frequency electroencephalography (EEG) rhythms in response to visual stimulation, whereas novices had increased high-frequency EEG rhythms. Correlational analyses revealed that novice meditators changed from a meditative state to a nonrelaxed state when the visual stimuli were presented, whereas experienced meditators maintained the meditative state.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The study provides evidence that regular concentrative meditation can improve emotional stability and that recording physiologic responses to visual stimuli can be a good method for identifying the effects of long-term concentrative meditation practice.
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Electrical Engineering, National Cheng Kung University , Tainan, Taiwan .
authors.forename: Yu-Hao
authors.initials: YH
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Yung-Jong
authors.initials: YJ
authors.lastname: Shiah
authors.forename: Sharon Chia-Ju
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Shih-Feng
authors.initials: SF
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Ming-Shing
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Young
authors.forename: Chih-Lung
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Lin
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D004569:Electroencephalography / Q000379:methods*; D004644:Emotions / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006339:Heart Rate / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D019122:Meditation; D008875:Middle Aged; D010775:Photic Stimulation