Zen meditation and access to information in the unconscious

In two experiments and two different research paradigms, we tested the hypothesis that Zen meditation increases access to accessible but unconscious information. Zen practitioners who meditated in the lab performed better on the Remote Associate Test (RAT; Mednick, 1962) than Zen practitioners who did not meditate. In a new, second task, it was observed that Zen practitioners who meditated used subliminally primed words more than Zen practitioners who did not meditate. Practical and theoretical implications are discussed.

► We examined whether Zen meditation increases access to unconscious information. ► Advanced Zen practitioners meditated in the lab or not. ► Meditation increased performance on the Remote Associate Test. ► Meditation increased the use of subliminally primed words.