Training the Moral Self: An 8-Week Mindfulness Meditation Program Leads to Reduced Dishonest Behavior and Increased Regulation of Interoceptive Awareness
Mindfulness October 16, 2023 Susanna Feruglio, M. S. Panasiti, Cristiano Crescentini et al.
An 8-week mindfulness meditation training reduced self-serving dishonest behavior in a card game where participants were tempted to lie for money. Trained participants deceived significantly less after training, while a waitlisted control group showed no change. Self-report measures showed increases in attention regulation, body awareness, emotion regulation, and non-reactivity to inner experience among trained participants. The amount of weekly meditation practice predicted moral behavior change, especially in those with the highest ability to regulate attention toward internal bodily signals. The results suggest that mindfulness meditation decreases dishonesty and heightens awareness of bodily and emotional states.