Focused attention meditation changes the boundary and configuration of functional networks in the brain

Focused attention meditation reorganizes the brain's large-scale functional networks, not just individual connections. Using intensive daily measurements from one person, the study found that meditation changed which brain regions belong to which network: several regions from the fronto-parietal network (FPN) moved into the default mode network (DMN) after meditation, and the FPN's network membership became less stable. This suggests meditation reshapes whole-brain network architecture, offering insight into its neural mechanisms.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Research has shown that focused attention meditation not only improves our cognitive and motivational functioning (e.g., attention, mental health), it influences the way our brain networks [e.g., default mode network (DMN), fronto-parietal network (FPN), and sensory-motor network (SMN)] function and operate. However, surprisingly little attention has been paid to the possibility that meditation alters the architecture (composition) of these functional brain networks. Here, using a single-case experimental design with intensive longitudinal data, we examined the effect of mediation practice on intra-individual changes in the composition of whole-brain networks. The results showed that meditation (1) changed the community size (with a number of regions in the FPN being merged into the DMN after meditation) and (2) led to instability in the community allegiance of the regions in the FPN. These results suggest that, in addition to altering specific functional connectivity, meditation leads to reconfiguration of whole-brain network architecture. The reconfiguration of community architecture in the brain provides fruitful information about the neural mechanisms of meditation