How meditation affects attention: a computational modeling perspective

old_uid13065
titleHow meditation affects attention: a computational modeling perspective
start_date2013/11/25
schedule11h-12h30
onlineno
location_infoBât 452
detailsinvitée par l'équipe CAP
summaryWhile the number of publications about the effects of meditation and mindfulness is exploding, the theory underlying it is spread relatively thin. I propose that one tool to better investigate the mechanisms by which meditation affects cognition and emotion are computational models of cognition. For example, I previously showed, using a summed similarity model of recognition memory, that participating in a meditation retreat resulted in a reduction in perceptual noise during a visual recognition memory task. One step further is developing an actual model of the meditation practices themselves. I will discuss how this model works, and how it may be used to explain data I recently collected on the magnitude of the attentional blink during different meditative states. In addition, I will discuss how this new theoretical framework may be used to make predictions for the effects of meditation on not-yet-tested cognitive tasks.
responsiblesBéranger, Rossetti