Loving-Kindness Meditation Promotes Mental Health in University Students
Christina Totzeck, Tobias Teismann, Stefan G Hofmann, Ruth Von Brachel, Verena Pflug, Andre Wannemüller, Jürgen Margraf
Mindfulness May 2, 2020 DOI: 10.1007/s12671-020-01375-w (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Controlled trial with matched control group Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 110 |
| Population | University students in Germany |
| Intervention | Loving-kindness meditation |
| Duration | 1-year follow-up |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Citations | 62 |
| Key findings | Loving-kindness meditation significantly decreased depression, anxiety, and stress over one year for completers, while the control group experienced increases. |
Abstract
Abstract Objectives Loving-kindness meditation (LKM) has been shown to improve wellbeing and positive emotions in clinical and non-clinical populations. The main goal of the present study was to examine whether LKM might be an effective intervention to promote positive mental health using the Positive Mental Health Scale (PMH) and to decrease depression, anxiety, and stress in university students.
Methods: The sample ( n = 110) consisted of university students in Germany. One half of them ( n = 55) underwent LKM intervention. They were compared with a matched control group ( n = 55) which did not receive treatment. All participants completed positive and negative mental health measures at baseline and 1-year follow-up assessments. LKM participants additionally completed the same measures before and after treatment. Multiple analyses of variance were conducted to test for short- and long-term effects of LKM on positive and negative mental health measures.
Results: A significant short-term effect of LKM on anxiety and PMH was found. Long-term analyses revealed a significant decrease of depression, anxiety, and stress for LKM completers, and a significant increase of depression, anxiety, and stress for the control group.
Conclusions: The results suggest that LKM enhances mental health in university students.
Comparable studies
Other non-randomized and open-label trials on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction in Relation to Quality of Life, Mood, Symptoms of Stress, and Immune Parameters in Breast and Prostate Cancer Outpatients Early-stage breast and prostate cancer patients | 2003 | Pre-post intervention study | n = 59 |
| Exploring self‐compassion and empathy in the context of mindfulness‐based stress reduction (MBSR) Community sample | 2010 | Pre-post intervention study | |
| Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Lowers Psychological Distress In Medical Students Second-year medical students | 2003 | Prospective nonrandomized cohort-controlled study | n = 302 |
| Intensive meditation training, immune cell telomerase activity, and psychological mediators. Retreat participants and matched controls | 2011 | Controlled trial with wait-list control group | n = 60 |
| The Effectiveness of Mindfulness Training for Children with ADHD and Mindful Parenting for their Parents Children aged 8-12 with ADHD and their parents | 2011 | Within-group waitlist controlled trial | n = 22 |
Citations in the library
Cited by 14
- Loving-kindness and walking meditation with a robot: Countering negative mood by stimulating creativity International Journal of Human-Computer Studies July 8, 2023
- The effects of a combination of cognitive interventions and loving-kindness meditations (C-METTA) on guilt, shame and PTSD symptoms: results from a pilot randomized controlled trial. European Journal of Psychotraumatology 2024
- The integration of meditation into higher education: a systematic literature review. Journal of American College Health January 15, 2025
- Beyond prohibition: A public health analysis of naturalistic psychedelic use Journal of Psychedelic Studies July 3, 2025
- Effects of Mindfulness Training on Wellbeing and Emotional Intelligence in Pre-Service Teachers Psicologí a Educativa May 1, 2026
and 9 more in the library
Cites 8
- Open hearts build lives: Positive emotions, induced through loving-kindness meditation, build consequential personal resources. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology October 27, 2008
- Loving-kindness and compassion meditation: potential for psychological interventions. Clinical Psychology Review July 26, 2011
- A mindfulness-based intervention to increase resilience to stress in university students (the Mindful Student Study): a pragmatic randomised controlled trial The Lancet Public Health December 18, 2017
- Effect of kindness-based meditation on health and well-being: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology June 30, 2014
- In search of durable positive psychology interventions: Predictors and consequences of long-term positive behavior change The Journal of Positive Psychology September 1, 2010
and 3 more in the library