The Psychology of Meditation

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"What is meditation and how can its effects be explained? What do people hope to get from it and what do they really get? And what are the best ways to research the psychology of meditation so we can understand more? This book by a leading meditation scientist and practitioner provides state-of-the-art answers to these questions. It first describes the varieties of meditation in detail and then succinctly summarizes the beneficial effects shown by numerous studies, especially in clinical contexts, and also explores recently emerging topics such as negative effects and the impact of ethics and spirituality. The theories of four main traditional meditation approaches and a critical overview of Western approaches to explain the effects of meditation follow. The author then makes recommendations about how to improve future meditation research. This book is of interest to meditation researchers, mental health practitioners, students interested in meditation and mindfulness, and to anyone who seriously wants to know more about the topic."-- Provided by publisher