Effect of Meditaion on the Attentional Network Task Performance

Abstract

newline In recent time, various articles demonstrated the benefits of different forms of newlinemeditation training. Studies suggest that months to years of systematic and intensive newlinetraining of meditation can improve cognitive abilities like attention. Attention is a newlinecognitive ability essential for various forms of learning, regulating one s thoughts, newlineemotions and actions. Meditation is a form of mental training which is shown to improve newlinemental focus. The present research investigates the contribution of attentional networks to newlinelong term effects of meditation. The present research follows the objectives: To examine newlinethe efficiency of each attentional network subsystems i.e., alerting subsystem, orienting newlinesubsystem and executive control subsystem in terms of reaction time and accuracy newlineperformance in meditation practitioners and non meditation practitioners on attention newlinenetwork task. To examine the interaction effects of the three network i.e., alerting newlinenetwork, orienting network and executive control network in terms of reaction time and newlineaccuracy performance in meditation practitioners and non meditation practitioners on newlineattention network task. We hypothesized that: There would be significant difference in newlinethe functioning of alerting, orienting and executive functioning subsystem of attention newlinenetwork in meditation practitioners (vipassana, transcendental and preksha) and nonmeditation newlinepractitioners on reaction time and accuracy performance. There would be newlinesignificant differences in interaction effect of three attentional networks i.e., alerting, newlineorienting and executive control in meditation practitioners (vipassana, transcendental, newlinepreksha) and non-meditation practitioner participants on reaction time and accuracy newlineperformance.