Journal Articles

Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://mro.massey.ac.nz/handle/10179/7915

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Subject: search.filters.subject.Consciousness

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    Behavioral evidence for global consciousness transcending national parochialism.
    (Springer Nature, 2023-12-04) Liu JH; Choi SY; Lee I-C; Leung AK-Y; Lee M; Lin M-H; Hodgetts D; Chen SX
    While national parochialism is commonplace, individual differences explain more variance in it than cross-national differences. Global consciousness (GC), a multi-dimensional concept that includes identification with all humanity, cosmopolitan orientation, and global orientation, transcends national parochialism. Across six societies (N = 11,163), most notably the USA and China, individuals high in GC were more generous allocating funds to the other in a dictator game, cooperated more in a one-shot prisoner's dilemma, and differentiated less between the ingroup and outgroup on these actions. They gave more to the world and kept less for the self in a multi-level public goods dilemma. GC profiles showed 80% test-retest stability over 8 months. Implications of GC for cultural evolution in the face of trans-border problems are discussed.
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    Volitional mental absorption in meditation: Toward a scientific understanding of advanced concentrative absorption meditation and the case of jhana
    (Elsevier Ltd, 2024-05-30) Yang WFZ; Sparby T; Wright M; Kim E; Sacchet MD
    Meditation has been integral to human culture for millennia, deeply rooted in various spiritual and contemplative traditions. While the field of contemplative science has made significant steps toward understanding the effects of meditation on health and well-being, there has been little study of advanced meditative states, including those achieved through intense concentration and absorption. We refer to these types of states as advanced concentrative absorption meditation (ACAM), characterized by absorption with the meditation object leading to states of heightened attention, clarity, energy, effortlessness, and bliss. This review focuses on a type of ACAM known as jhana (ACAM-J) due to its well-documented history, systematic practice approach, recurring phenomenological themes, and growing popularity among contemplative scientists and more generally in media and society. ACAM-J encompasses eight layers of deep concentration, awareness, and internal experiences. Here, we describe the phenomenology of ACAM-J and present evidence from phenomenological and neuroscientific studies that highlight their potential applications in contemplative practices, psychological sciences, and therapeutics. We additionally propose theoretical ACAM-J frameworks grounded in current cognitive neuroscientific understanding of meditation and ancient contemplative traditions. We aim to stimulate further research on ACAM more broadly, encompassing advanced meditation including meditative development and meditative endpoints. Studying advanced meditation including ACAM, and specific practices such as ACAM-J, can potentially revolutionize our understanding of consciousness and applications for mental health.
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    Bedside EEG predicts longitudinal behavioural changes in disorders of consciousness
    (Elsevier Inc, 2020) Bareham CA; Roberts N; Allanson J; Hutchinson PJA; Pickard JD; Menon DK; Chennu S
    Providing an accurate prognosis for prolonged disorder of consciousness (pDOC) patients remains a clinical challenge. Large cross-sectional studies have demonstrated the diagnostic and prognostic value of functional brain networks measured using high-density electroencephalography (hdEEG). Nonetheless, the prognostic value of these neural measures has yet to be assessed by longitudinal follow-up. We address this gap by assessing the utility of hdEEG to prognosticate long-term behavioural outcome, employing longitudinal data collected from a cohort of patients assessed systematically with resting hdEEG and the Coma Recovery Scale-Revised (CRS-R) at the bedside over a period of two years. We used canonical correlation analysis to relate clinical (including CRS-R scores combined with demographic variables) and hdEEG variables to each other. This analysis revealed that the patient’s age, and the hdEEG theta band power and alpha band connectivity, contributed most significantly to the relationship between hdEEG and clinical variables. Further, we found that hdEEG measures recorded at the time of assessment augmented clinical measures in predicting CRS-R scores at the next assessment. Moreover, the rate of hdEEG change not only predicted later changes in CRS-R scores, but also outperformed clinical measures in terms of prognostic power. Together, these findings suggest that improvements in functional brain networks precede changes in behavioural awareness in pDOC. We demonstrate here that bedside hdEEG assessments conducted at specialist nursing homes are feasible, have clinical utility, and can complement clinical knowledge and systematic behavioural assessments to inform prognosis and care.