States of Consciousness - Research Paper Example

While altered states of consciousness are generally associated with drug use, they also involve meditation and hypnosis. This essay presents a thorough research on these aspects of consciousness. Meditation Meditation is understood as the mode of inducing a specific state of consciousness to achieve a mental benefit. While meditation has a connotation as being a somewhat mystical or new age like experience, in reality it is an ancient practice that has been shown to have positive mental health benefits.

In the previous few decades meditation has gradually gained acceptance in the Western world with increasing numbers of individuals and medical practitioners practicing some form of meditation. In terms of medical research, a plethora of studies have examined the physical and mental effects of meditation on human consciousness. In these regards studies have found tangible evidence demonstrating that meditation impacts changes in metabolism, blood pressure, brain activation, and other bodily processes, as well as being implemented in a number of means for stress, pain, and anxiety reduction (Newberg & Iversen, 2003).

While meditation has been demonstrated to have beneficial mental effects, what actually constitutes meditation or a meditative state is defined differently among researchers. Wood, Wood & Boyd (2009, pg. 167) understand meditation as, “a group of techniques that involve focusing attention on an object, a word, one’s breathing, or one’s body movements in an effort to block out all distractions, to enhance well-being, and enact an altered state of consciousness.” This approach to meditation is that which is generally most recognized among Western medical practitioners and psychological professionals.

This understanding is oftentimes augmented by an increased emphasis on the attention of the meditator, with Goleman (1988) stating, “the need for the meditator to retrain his attention, whether through concentration or mindfulness, is the single invariant ingredient in. every meditation system.” Other researchers have identified the Eastern connotations of the term and recognize its contextual significance within a number of religious or spiritual practices. In these regards, meditation functions to achieve a sort of spiritual enlightenment or transcendence.

In terms of Western implementations of meditation there are a variety of practices and corresponding medical research. One of the most prominent meditation practices in the United States is mindfulness based meditation. While influenced by ancient meditative traditions, mindfulness based meditation was popularized in the United States through the work of Jon Kabat-Zinn at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center. This form of meditation is greatly influenced by Eastern traditions, most specifically Buddhism, in that it emphasizes non-judgmental self-awareness.

This approach has been articulated as a, “form of naturalistic observation, or participant-observation, in which the objects of observation are the perceptible mental phenomena that normally arise during waking consciousness" (Grossman, Niemann, Schmidt & Walach). Much research has been conducted on this form of meditation with many studies indicating that mindfulness based meditation has beneficial effects on stress and anxiety. In addition, it has also been