Frontiers in Psychology
November 3, 2015
Xianglong Zeng, Cleo P. K. Chiu, Rong Wang et al.
256 citations
Loving-kindness meditation (LKM) effectively enhances positive emotions, according to a systematic review and meta-analysis of 24 empirical studies involving 1,759 participants. The analysis found medium effect sizes for LKM interventions on daily positive emotions in both wait-list controlled randomized trials and non-randomized studies, and small to large effect sizes for immediate positive emotions from ongoing practice. Interventions focused specifically on loving-kindness produced medium effects, while compassion-focused interventions yielded small effects. The length of interventions and meditation time did not influence outcomes, but studies without didactic components showed small effects. Individual differences and the nature of positive emotions also affected results. More research is needed to identify active intervention components and applicability in clinical populations.
International journal of psychology : Journal international de psychologie
April 1, 2025
Rong Wang, Jingyi Zhou, Yang Zhang et al.
3 citations
Appreciative joy—taking delight in others' happiness—and gratitude are related but distinct emotions. A cross-sectional survey of adults found a moderate positive correlation between the two, and gratitude partly explained how appreciative joy relates to subjective well-being. A randomized controlled trial tested four weeks of appreciative joy meditation training. At a one-month follow-up, the training increased both appreciative joy and gratitude, and changes in gratitude were driven by changes in appreciative joy. Although subjective well-being improved immediately after the training, the data did not confirm that appreciative joy or gratitude caused that improvement. The findings clarify how Buddhist meditation practices may boost well-being through gratitude.
Midwifery
July 15, 2025
Xin Wang, Ying Luo, Ying Gao et al.
A meta-analysis of ten randomized controlled trials found that mindfulness-based interventions significantly improve depression in women who have experienced fetal loss, with a large effect size. The interventions were effective for anxiety only in women without pre-existing anxiety symptoms. Improvements in post-traumatic growth were seen only with short-duration interventions (less than four weeks). The analysis notes that few high-quality trials exist, sample sizes are small, and long-term follow-up is lacking. The findings support integrating mindfulness-based interventions into psychosocial care, especially for women with prior psychological symptoms, and indicate a need for refined intervention strategies.
Stress and health : journal of the International Society for the Investigation of Stress
February 1, 2024
Rong Wang, Xiaodan Gu, Yang Zhang et al.
Loving-kindness and compassion meditation (LKCM) reduces burnout, stress, and improves mindfulness, self-compassion, mental health, job attitudes, interpersonal relationships, and psychological resources among employees, based on a meta-analysis of 21 trials. Effect sizes ranged from small to moderate (g = 0.283 to 0.646). The benefits varied by participants' job type, gender, and the meditation's focus. The authors call for more research on long-term effects, underlying mechanisms, and organizational-level outcomes.
Journal of Happiness Studies
January 1, 2023
Xianglong Zeng, Yuan Zheng, Xiaodan Gu et al.
Two studies of loving-kindness and compassion meditation training found that the quality of meditation practice—specifically difficulties with concentration and generating prosocial attitudes—was more strongly linked to improvements in subjective well-being than the amount of time spent meditating. In a small in-person study (41 participants) and a larger online study (243 participants), both short-term weekly and long-term changes in well-being were associated with meditation quality. The findings suggest that focusing on how well people meditate, rather than how long, may be key to increasing well-being through these practices.