Cognitive and Emotional Differences between Short- and Long-Term Vipassana Meditators
Barbara L. Easterlin, Etzel Cardeña
Imagination, Cognition and Personality September 1, 1998 DOI: 10.2190/21gx-r4td-xmd4-6p2w (opens in new tab)
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractAdvanced Buddhist mindfulness meditators report greater self-awareness, positive mood, and acceptance compared to beginners. Over five days of electronic paging and experience sampling, stress lowered mood and self-acceptance in both groups, but the harmful effect of stress on acceptance was stronger for beginners. The findings validate in everyday life some effects described in traditional Buddhist texts on mindfulness.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Observational cohort Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 43 |
| Population | Buddhist mindfulness meditators (19 beginning, 24 advanced) |
| Duration | 5-day intervention |
| Key finding | Advanced meditators reported greater self-awareness, positive mood, and acceptance than beginners, and stress had a more deleterious effect on acceptance for beginners. |
Abstract
This study compared perceived stress and cognitive and emotional differences between two groups of Buddhist mindfulness meditators. Nineteen beginning and twenty-four advanced meditators carried electronic pagers for five days and responded to daily random signals by completing an Experience Sampling form (ESF) containing items related to the dependent variables. As compared with beginners, advanced practitioners reported greater self-awareness, positive mood, and acceptance. Greater stress lowered mood and self-acceptance in both groups, but the deleterious effect of stress on acceptance was more marked for the beginners. These findings validate in a naturalistic setting some of the effects described in traditional Buddhist texts on mindfulness.