Meditation may make you less of a jerk, researcher says

A new study by Yale researchers shows that experienced meditators may have less activity in parts of the brain associated with daydreaming and distraction while meditating and in their day-to-day lives.

The results, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, may help explain the benefits of meditation on concentration and open the door to future research using meditation to treat and potentially prevent a variety of psychiatric and neurological disorders, including anxiety, autism, and schizophrenia.

The researchers, led by Judson Brewer, an assistant professor of psychiatry, analyzed the brain activity of 24 meditators — half with thousands of hours of practice and half who were novices — with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). In three meditation exercises, the experienced meditators were able to deactivate the default mode network,which consists of the medial prefrontal and posterior cingulate cortex and is responsible for lapses in attention. The novices, however, did not change the activity in this brain region.

A meditator himself, Brewer said he wasn't surprised that his study revealed the positive effects of meditation. "You get these delayed benefits that are really remarkable," he told The Hartford (Conn.) Courant.  "You're less stressed, and hopefully you're less of a jerk."

Meditation May Help Brain Tune Out Distractions

http://www.courant.com/health/connecticut/hc-meditation-focus-1122-20111121,0,4810527.story