The limited prosocial effects of meditation: A systematic review and meta-analysis
U. Kreplin, Miguel Farias, Inti A. Brazil
Scientific Reports February 5, 2018 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-20299-z (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Systematic review and meta-analysis Randomized Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Healthy adults |
| Intervention | meditation interventions |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Key findings | Meditation interventions increased compassion and empathy but not aggression, connectedness, or prejudice, and effects on compassion depended on teacher involvement and control group type. |
Abstract
Many individuals believe that meditation has the capacity to not only alleviate mental-illness but to improve prosociality. This article systematically reviewed and meta-analysed the effects of meditation interventions on prosociality in randomized controlled trials of healthy adults. Five types of social behaviours were identified: compassion, empathy, aggression, connectedness and prejudice. Although we found a moderate increase in prosociality following meditation, further analysis indicated that this effect was qualified by two factors: type of prosociality and methodological quality. Meditation interventions had an effect on compassion and empathy, but not on aggression, connectedness or prejudice. We further found that compassion levels only increased under two conditions: when the teacher in the meditation intervention was a co-author in the published study; and when the study employed a passive (waiting list) control group but not an active one. Contrary to popular beliefs that meditation will lead to prosocial changes, the results of this meta-analysis showed that the effects of meditation on prosociality were qualified by the type of prosociality and methodological quality of the study. We conclude by highlighting a number of biases and theoretical problems that need addressing to improve quality of research in this area.
Comparable studies
Other systematic reviews and meta-analyses on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Meditation Programs for Psychological Stress and Well-being Diverse adult clinical populations | 2014 | Meta-analysis | n = 3,515 |
| Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction for Stress Management in Healthy People: A Review and Meta-Analysis Healthy subjects | 2009 | Systematic review and meta-analysis | |
| The psychological effects of meditation: A meta-analysis. Nonclinical groups of adult meditators | 2012 | Meta-analysis | n = 163 |
| Efficacy of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy in Prevention of Depressive Relapse Adults with recurrent depression in full or partial remission | 2016 | Meta-analysis of individual patient data from randomized controlled trials | n = 1,258 |
| Mindfulness‐Based Stress Reduction and Mindfulness‐Based Cognitive Therapy – a systematic review of randomized controlled trials | 2011 | Systematic review |
Citations in the library
Cited by 89
- The Empirical Status of Mindfulness-Based Interventions: A Systematic Review of 44 Meta-Analyses of Randomized Controlled Trials Perspectives on Psychological Science February 16, 2021
- Psychedelics, Meditation, and Self-Consciousness Frontiers in Psychology September 4, 2018
- The Way Forward in Mindfulness and Sustainability: a Critical Review and Research Agenda Journal of Cognitive Enhancement July 2, 2020
- Self-Compassion When Coping With Venture Obstacles: Loving-Kindness Meditation and Entrepreneurial Fear of Failure Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice December 16, 2019
- The (In)flexible self: Psychopathology, mindfulness, and neuroscience. International journal of clinical and health psychology : IJCHP 2023
and 84 more in the library
Cites 22
- Prevention of relapse/recurrence in major depression by mindfulness-based cognitive therapy. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology 2000
- Meditation Programs for Psychological Stress and Well-being JAMA Internal Medicine January 6, 2014
- Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction for Stress Management in Healthy People: A Review and Meta-Analysis The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine May 1, 2009
- Loving-kindness and compassion meditation: potential for psychological interventions. Clinical Psychology Review July 26, 2011
- The psychological effects of meditation: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin May 14, 2012
and 17 more in the library