☆ Exam Questions ☆ Flashcards
Meditation has routinely been reported to have a small effect size. Why might we continue to use it?
Despite its small effect size, we might still use meditation because it is…
• Cheaper and more accessible than some other EBTs
• Safer than some other EBTs
• Good for patients who did not have success with other treatments or those facing healthcare barriers
• Useful in conjunction with other EBTs
This question deals with the effects of meditation on social behaviour.
a) What are the barriers to treating loneliness?
b) What three aspects of performance in the ultimatum game are typically studied?
a) Loneliness isn’t responsive to many treatments (such as forced interaction, support networks or social skills training)
Example: individuals who feel lonely can be fine at completing social interactions
b) punishment of the dictator, recompensation of the injured party, tendency to accept unfair offers
Differentiate heart rate and heart rate variability
HR: heart beat
HRV: measure of change between heartbeat intervals
Describe the breath of fire practice
Breath of fire practice heightens arousal; evidenced by increased HR and BR
What measure of cardiovascular function is most likely to be taken by your doctor and has an early warning sign of later health problems?
Blood pressure
You believe that you have identified a meditative state which classifies as a unique state of consciousness what evidence would you collect to support your theory?
Phenomenological measures: altered states of consciousness test, mysticism scale, near death experience scale
Neural measures: EEG
Physiological measures: breathing and heart rate
General behaviour: response to pain stimuli
Discuss the contribution of the amygdala and hippocampus to the HPA axis activity
The amygdala activates the HPA axis in response to stress. The hippocampus (via negative feedback) inhibits the HPA axis
Discuss the physiological evidence that meditation reduces stress reactivity
Biomarkers of stress: meditation has been shown to reduce cortisol, noradrenaline, and adrenaline
What brain structure was highlighted many times as the brain structure most sensitive and meditation practice?
Insula
How might we assess the potential of meditation to increase false memories?
Deese-Roediger McDermott (DRM) test
What two brain regions are sensitive to meditation and implicated in the effects of meditation on memory?
Hippocampus and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex
What is the main form of memory examined in meditation studies?
STM/working memory
We are bad at estimating our TUTs. Explain evidence for this.
We tend to report being less distracted and we really are.
This is evidenced by more probe-caught TUTs (caught by the testing system) appearing than self-reported TUTs
What is mindful detachment?
Detached: views our cognition (thoughts/beliefs) as something external to who we are. In other words, you are an observer of your thoughts
Mindful: not reacting to these thoughts; you become aware of the thought but you don’t try to suppress or control it
