Center for Healthy Minds

A recent paper explored a promising research framework that adapts research on well-being practices such as meditation to be more inclusive to underrepresented groups of people.

Researchers at the Center for Healthy Minds introduce a new framework based on scientific evidence that suggests that well-being can be thought of as a set of skills that people can learn through practice in daily life.

A new study from researchers at the Center for Healthy Minds and the School of Education at the University of Wisconsin–Madison suggests that a fully remote program administered on smartphones can also produce some of the benefits of in-person mindfulness interventions, including a reduction in symptoms of depression, anxiety and stress and an increase in feelings of social connection.

A team at the Center for Healthy Minds is starting new research to understand whether a mobile well-being app, the Healthy Minds Program, can improve depression for people living with the condition.

This year's The World We Make event is free and open to the public, from October 5 - 9, 2020. The nightly virtual events  will explore science of well-being and feature new insights from His Holiness the Dalai Lama.

In a recent collaborative study across institutions, researchers developed a new framework to identify mental states during meditation. This included the focus-on-breath state and mind wandering, and estimates of how much time meditators spend in each state.

Researchers at the Center for Healthy Minds found that people who took part in the most common and widely available secular mindfulness program did not experience psychological harm at a rate higher compared to people in control groups who did not take part in the program.

A college student’s mind is constantly in motion. There are classes, homework, a social life, work, and more. But there’s growing research showing that we can all benefit from taking a few moments each day to, well, live in the moment. Center Postdoctoral Research Associate Matt Hirshberg answers questions about how mindfulness can help college students ease their mind.

A recent paper published by researchers at the Center for Healthy Minds showed that eight weeks of mindfulness training resulted in reductions in work-related stress, improvements in sleep quality, lower levels of burnout and reduced depression and anxiety in police officers.

New research from the Center points to evidence that long-term meditators may be perceived by strangers as less neurotic, more mindful, more conscientious and more comfortable in their own skin.

New research from the Center suggests that mindfulness training in experienced meditators as well as in people new to meditation does not lower certain aspects of impulsivity.

The faithful are powered by belief; scientists demand proof. What if the two groups joined forces to protect the earth? That's the goal of the Loka Initiative

The 25th Wisconsin Symposium on Emotion was held in April 2019. We review the past 25 years of advances in the field of affective neuroscience

A new program from Healthy Minds Innovations, the nonprofit affiliated with the Center for Healthy Minds, brings well-being skills to workplaces

Faculty member Simon Goldberg shares research about mental health treatment delays in the U.S. veteran population

Mindfulness meditation is helpful for mental health treatment, but more research is needed

A scientist from the Center for Healthy Minds has discovered a relationship between inflammation in the blood and people’s response to a depression drug

The Center for Healthy Minds partners with former NFL players for an eight-week workshop to look at how mindfulness practices might impact their lives

Two weeks of compassion meditation training may reduce distress and improve a person’s ability to look at others who are suffering

A new course, piloted in conjunction with the Center for Healthy Minds at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, University of Virginia and Pennsylvania State University, aims to integrate extracurricular learning experiences with intellectual topics in the classroom

Richard Davidson shares the latest research on why experience matters at the 2018 American Association for the Advancement of Science meeting in Austin, Texas

Center researchers are investigating cross-talk between the brain and lungs of people with asthma to understand how psychological stress can make asthma worse

A new study will bring a better scientific understanding of the unique stressors facing police officers

Meditation may decrease the risk of heart disease, according to a first-ever statement on the practice issued by the American Heart Association, with contributions from the Center for Healthy Minds

Researchers find a steady decrease in references to the natural world in music, literature and film

Graduate students who underwent the intervention reported an increase in personal qualities associated with creativity

Our Center's research findings suggest mindfulness training that addresses fear and pain during childbirth improves childbirth experiences and lessens depression symptoms

Center for Healthy Minds studies explore the influence of the brain on inflammatory diseases such as asthma

A pilot study from the Center will explore the impact of mindfulness-based practices on officers’ physical and mental well-being

A study led by Center faculty member Charles Raison suggests that raising body temperature to the point of a mild fever reduces depression symptoms for up to 6 weeks following a single treatment

Center scientists use brain imaging to reveal the complexity, range of response, and symptoms for individuals with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

Compassion – and intentionally cultivating it through training – may lead us to do more to help the wronged than to punish the wrongdoer

New research on the relationship between savoring positive emotions and overall well-being

The Center for Healthy Minds partners with Wisconsin School of Business to bring their Cultivating Well-Being curriculum to the workplace

Empathy with both positive and negative emotions may be equally effective in inspiring altruism

Research suggests breath counting may be one route to improving attention and well-being

Research suggests people who experience chronic marital stress are less able to savor positive experiences – a hallmark of depression

Can cues in our environment we're unaware of shape our behavior and emotions toward others?

New research suggests mindfulness meditation may alter how genes are expressed in the body

Finding meaning from life’s experiences may play a role in our ability to regulate our emotions, research suggests

A new grant will support initiatives to help determine whether meditation produces long-lasting changes in the brain

Teachers who practice mindfulness may be better able to reduce their own levels of stress and prevent burnout

A documentary follows Center Founder Richard Davidson's journey in understanding the mind and well-being

How long the brain takes to recover from a threat may be an indicator of personality traits like neuroticism

A new study at the Center is studying how alternative programs may help veterans experiencing PTSD

A Center study suggests mindfulness meditation may provide relief from chronic inflammation

Meditation can change the way a person experiences pain, according to a new study by the Center

There are practices that can change our brains for the better, according to new Center research

What are the costs when our minds wander?

Center Founder Richard Davidson authors a new book on the science of emotions

The John Templeton Foundation gives a grant to the Center to study virtues such as altruism and compassion

Stress from immediate threats may negatively affect our ability for more complex thinking

Are individuals with depression able to sustain activity in brain areas related to positive emotion?

What does science say about our ability to train attention?

Grant from Fetzer Institute allows Davidson's lab to explore the impact of love, other positive qualities on the brain

Center Founder Richard Davidson is senior author on a study examining differences in the neural circuits responsible for emotional regulation in depressed individuals

Center Founder Richard Davidson leads study that finds lasting changes in brain, immune system due to participation in short mindfulness meditation program

Center Founder Richard Davidson is co-author of a study on brain activity in clinically depressed individuals that could be used to predetermine the effectiveness of antideppressants

Center for Healthy Minds Founder Richard Davidson is a speaker at UW-Madison's 6th annual Wisconsin Symposium on Emotion

Richard Davidson oversees study exploring differences in brain circuitry and the resulting physiological and emotional responses due to stress in older women