Psychotherapeutic effects of transcendental meditation with controls for expectation of relief and daily sitting.
Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology 1976 DOI: 10.1037/0022-006x.44.4.630 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Controlled trial Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Interventions | Transcendental Meditation Periodic Somatic Inactivity |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Keywords | Transcendental meditation Sitting Psychotherapist Transcendental number Clinical psychology Epistemology Theology |
| Citations | 70 |
| Key findings | Transcendental Meditation was compared to a control treatment of sitting with eyes closed. |
Abstract
In 1959, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi introduced to America an exercise involving sitting quietly twice daily and passively attending to a special thought called a This exercise is called transcendental meditation (TM) and has since been taught to at least 600,000 persons. One possible reason for TM's popularity is Maharishi's claim that the technique is a natural and effective cure for mental illness. TM was taught by two official TM instructors from the East Lansing, Michigan, Students' International Meditation Society. The TM technique involves sitting twice daily for 15 to 20 minutes and passively and continuously attending to a special thought called a mantra. Periodic somatic inactivity (PSI) was a control treatment specifically contrived to match every aspect of TM with one exception: Instead of sitting and meditating, the PSI technique involved simply sitting with eyes closed.
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 23
- Meditation Programs for Psychological Stress and Well-being JAMA Internal Medicine January 6, 2014
- The psychological effects of meditation: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin May 14, 2012
- Transcendental Meditation, mindfulness, and longevity: An experimental study with the elderly. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 1989
- Blood Pressure Response to Transcendental Meditation: A Meta-analysis American Journal of Hypertension February 29, 2008
- Effects of the Transcendental Meditation Technique on Trait Anxiety: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine October 9, 2013
and 18 more in the library