Unbiasing the Brain: The Effects of Meditation Upon the Cerebral Hemispheres

Abstract

Twenty males with a strong right hand preference underwent 120 simple reaction time trials to a 500 hz auditory stimulus presented to right, left and both ears. Ten Transcendental Meditators served as their own controls in twenty minute meditation and relaxation conditions and were also compared to a ten Non-Meditator control group who relaxed only in two 20-minute conditions. The reaction time trials were administered after the conditions. When the ears were compared to each other a significant right-ear (left hemisphere) advantage (REA) occurred in all relaxation conditions of the Meditator and Non-Meditator control groups. However, no REA emerged after meditation conditions of the Meditator group. The Meditator group after meditation compared to their own baseline relaxation condition showed a significant suppression of reaction time latencies to stimulation delivered to the left hemisphere and a significant facilitation to stimulation delivered to the right hemisphere. The meaning of these findings suggest Transcendental Meditation is an attentional strategy that disrupts the usual biases of the brain which also has implications as a clinical method. A neuropsychological explanation of the results suggest a comprehensive theory of Transcendental Meditation.

No difference in cerebral hemispheric asymmetry of meditators as opposed to nonmeditators

“…Thus, at least in the aspects measured by our procedure, Transcendental Meditators do not appear to be more lateralized than nonmeditators, contrary to the EEG results of Bennett and Trinder (1977). Nor are they less lateralized than nonmeditators, as suggested by the ear-superiority data of Meissner and Pirot (1983).…”

“…Others interpreted these results as support for meditation's causing improved alertness outside of the meditative state (Dillbeck & Orme-Johnson, 1987, p. 880), presumably because of better flexibility to use the hemisphere appropriate to any given task. Meissner and Pirot (1983) also showed persistent effects of meditation, but in the direction of reducing asymmetry, thus contradicting Bennett and Trinder. Their measure also differed: Instead of using EEG, they tested left-versus right -ear superiority for recognition of tones.…”

“…At the least, Iateralization is not a sufficiently unitary phenomenon to warrant the simple generalization that meditation changes lateralization. Three different operationaiizations oflateralization have yielded the three different results of increased asymmetry (EEG, by Bennett & Trinder, 1977), decreased asymmetry (auditory function, by Meissner & Pirot, 1983), and no change (visual function, by us).…”

Left‐Right Brain Research and Its Premature Generalization to the Counseling Setting

“…A similar rationale is used by people who advocate meditation as a counseling intervention. Meissner and Pirot (1983), for instance, conducted a study to assess the effects of transcendental meditation on the perceptual efficiency of cerebral hemispheres. They found that after meditation, participants responded-more slowly to information presented auditorially to the left hemisphere.…”