There Is More to Mindfulness Than Emotion Regulation: A Study on Brain Structural Networks

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Psychology

Background:

• Dispositional mindfulness and emotion regulation are interrelated psychological constructs.
• Both constructs improve with long-term mindfulness meditation practice.
• Previous research links these to brain areas involved in emotional processing and cognitive control.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the neural basis of dispositional mindfulness, independent of emotion regulation.
• To explore the relationship between structural brain networks and dispositional mindfulness.
• To compare findings using two different mindfulness assessment tools.

Main Methods:

• Employed a novel brain structural network analysis approach.
• Measured dispositional mindfulness using the Mindfulness Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS) and the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ).
• Accounted for emotion regulation difficulties in the analysis.

Main Results:

• Overlap in brain regions (bilateral parahippocampal and fusiform gyri) for both FFMQ and MAAS total scores.
• MAAS scores uniquely associated with the bilateral hippocampus.
• FFMQ total score linked to the right insula and bilateral amygdala.

Conclusions:

• The neural correlates of dispositional mindfulness may differ based on the measurement instrument.
• Brain areas associated with emotional reactivity and semantic processing generally relate to dispositional mindfulness.
• Findings highlight the nuanced neural underpinnings of dispositional mindfulness.