A unified theory of hypnosis and meditation states: the interoceptive predictive coding approach

Abstract

The relationship between the states of awareness that emerge in hypnosis and meditation and within diverging meditation practices (e.g. mindfulness and yoga) is of fundamental importance to understanding the range and potentials of human consciousness. Cognitive neuroscience provides a powerful set of tools for researchers to probe both the effects of specific conscious states and the underlying causal dynamics of their operation. Within cognitive neuroscience the Bayesian framework of predictive coding has generated deep insights into the fundamental unity of the ordinary psychological processes of perception, learning, attention, memory, and action. In what follows key concepts from predictive coding: active inference, generative models, and interoceptive predictive coding (focusing on the role of the insula) are applied to our understanding of hypnosis and meditation states to provide a unified theory of these diverse states with clear implications for researchers and clinicians alike.