Effects of brief mindfulness meditation on compassion and personal distress using the socio-affective video task.
Gabriela Górska, Paweł Holas
Scientific Reports August 22, 2025 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-025-16416-4 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Randomized controlled trial Longitudinal Preregistered Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 80 |
| Population | Meditation-naive adults |
| Intervention | Mindfulness meditation |
| Duration | Single session |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Key findings | A single brief mindfulness meditation did not directly increase compassion but did so indirectly through increased mindfulness and decentration. |
Abstract
Recent findings indicate that meditation may enhance compassion and foster prosocial actions aimed at helping others. In the present preregistered research, we aimed to test hypotheses regarding the positive impact of a single short, guided mindfulness meditation on compassionate and personal distress responses, measured with the Socio-affective Video Task (SoVT), and the possible mechanisms of this effect. We hypothesized that individuals in the mindfulness group, compared to the active control group, would exhibit higher levels of compassion and reduced personal distress while viewing videos of people in distress. We also proposed that decentration and self-compassion would mediate this effect. Eighty individuals, novice to meditation, were randomly assigned to either the experimental (meditation) or control condition groups. We did not find a significant overall group effect on the presented videos. However, we demonstrated a serial partial mediation process, in which mindfulness state-measured through manipulation check questions assessing attention focused on breathing and awareness of bodily sensations-serves as the first mediator, and decentration as the second, mediating the relationship between group and SoVT measures. These findings suggest that even brief mindfulness meditation can enhance compassionate/empathic responses through increased mindfulness precursors and improved decentration abilities. More studies with longitudinal or experimental designs are needed to better understand the causal relationship between mindfulness meditation and compassionate responses.
Comparable studies
Other randomized controlled trials on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alterations in Brain and Immune Function Produced by Mindfulness Meditation Healthy employees in a work environment | 2003 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 41 |
| Prevention of relapse/recurrence in major depression by mindfulness-based cognitive therapy. Recovered recurrently depressed patients | 2000 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 145 |
| Open hearts build lives: Positive emotions, induced through loving-kindness meditation, build consequential personal resources. Working adults | 2008 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 139 |
| Short-term meditation training improves attention and self-regulation Undergraduate Chinese students | 2007 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 40 |
| Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Depression: Replication and Exploration of Differential Relapse Prevention Effects. Recovered recurrently depressed patients | 2004 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 73 |
Citations in the library
Cites 27
- Using Self-Report Assessment Methods to Explore Facets of Mindfulness Assessment January 27, 2006
- Mechanisms of mindfulness Journal of Clinical Psychology December 29, 2005
- The toronto mindfulness scale: Development and validation Journal of Clinical Psychology 2006
- Exploring self‐compassion and empathy in the context of mindfulness‐based stress reduction (MBSR) Stress and Health March 15, 2010
- An empirical study of the mechanisms of mindfulness in a mindfulness‐based stress reduction program Journal of Clinical Psychology March 6, 2009
and 22 more in the library