Self-compassion supports psychological health and can be improved through meditation, but it is unclear how to make meditation more effective. In a study with 71 students, a 3-minute sensory or semantic priming task was given before a 15-minute guided self-compassion meditation. Sensory priming reduced self-criticism more than semantic priming or a control condition, though the self-criticism scale had reliability issues. Neither priming type changed self-compassion, positive affect, or negative affect, nor did they boost the meditation's effects on these measures or the appeal of the meditation. The study was underpowered, with post hoc power estimates from 0.20 to 0.42, but offers preliminary insights for future research.
A single multi-person virtual reality experience can induce a state of selflessness—where the sense of self as the immediate subject of experience fades—and enhance interpersonal connectedness. It also increases low-arousal positive affect and warmth, and generates mystical and peak experiences in a notable subset of participants. The experience is widely accepted, with few adverse effects reported. This offers a cost-effective, non-pharmacological alternative to meditation and psychedelics for cultivating selflessness.
A compassion practice improved mental health and prosocial behaviors across all groups, but adding virtual reality (VR) boosted positive affect more than the practice alone, while adding a heating pad as somatosensory priming reduced negative affect less than the practice alone. Among participants with low mental imagery skills, VR significantly reduced criticism toward others. The study suggests that tools like VR can optimize compassion-based interventions for individuals who struggle with mental imagery.