A Randomized Trial of 21 Days of Loving Kindness Meditation for Stress Reduction and Emotional Well-being Within an Online Health Community for Patients, Family, and Friends Experiencing a Cancer Health Journey.
Susan Telke, Brent D. Leininger, Linda Hanson, Mary Jo Kreitzer
Journal of Integrative and Complementary Medicine February 1, 2022 DOI: 10.1089/jicm.2020.0512 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Randomized controlled trial Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 979 |
| Population | Adults over 18 using CaringBridge for a cancer journey, able to understand English and willing to participate in a mind-body practice |
| Intervention | Loving Kindness Meditation |
| Duration | 21-day intervention |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Keywords | Caringbridge Loving kindness meditation Mind–body Online Self-compassion Social connectedness |
| Registration | NCT05002842 |
| Key findings | Immediate LKM led to medium effect size improvements in stress (0.4), self-compassion (0.5), and social connectedness (0.4) compared with deferred LKM. |
Abstract
Objectives: CaringBridge (CB) is an online health community for people undergoing challenging health journeys. Loving Kindness Meditation (LKM) is a systemized mind-body approach developed to increase loving acceptance and has previously been reported to increase resilience in the face of adversity.
Materials and Methods: Results of a randomized controlled trial of immediate compared with deferred 21-day LKM intervention in an online community are reported. The deferred group received LKM intervention after a waiting period of 3 weeks. Inclusion criteria were >18 years old, ability to understand English, willingness to participate in a mind-body practice, and use of CB for a cancer journey. Change in perceived stress, self-compassion, social connectedness and assurance, and compassionate love scales from baseline to 21 days was assessed.
Results: Of the 979 participants included in the study, 649 (66%) provided 3-week follow-up data and 330 (49%) self-reported engaging in the LKM practice 5 or more days/week. Participants in the immediate LKM group reported medium effect size improvement in stress (0.4), self-compassion (0.5), and social connectedness (0.4) compared with the deferred LKM group. Changes in perceived stress and self-compassion were larger in magnitude and increased with more frequent engagement in LKM.
Conclusions: The immediate LKM group showed improvements in stress, self-compassion, and social connectedness compared with the deferred control group. Differential study retention rates by treatment arm and self-reported engagement in LKM subject the results to selection bias. Future research of similar interventions within online health communities might pay greater attention to promoting intervention adherence and engaging a more diverse economic and racial/ethnic population. ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT05002842).
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
Cited by 6
- Half a Century of Research for Mind–Body Interventions: A Scientometric Analysis Mindfulness May 17, 2025
- Implementing twelve-weeks of loving-kindness meditation and mindfulness of breathing for adolescents with nonsuicidal self-injury and their parents: a mixed method pilot study. BMC Psychology July 23, 2025
- Buddha image meditation is a potent predictor for mental health outcomes: A cross-sectional study among Thai high-school students. PLoS One 2025
- Effects of meditation on health promoting protective factors of persons with cardiovascular disease-a quasi-experimental pilot study with pre-post comparison. Cardiovascular diagnosis and therapy August 31, 2024
- Anticipating Stress: To Focus on the Body or Do a Self-Inquiry? The Effects of a Focused and Deconstructive Meditation Session on the Stress Response Mindfulness November 24, 2025
and 1 more in the library
Cites 13
- Loving-kindness and compassion meditation: potential for psychological interventions. Clinical Psychology Review July 26, 2011
- Regulation of the Neural Circuitry of Emotion by Compassion Meditation: Effects of Meditative Expertise PLoS One March 25, 2008
- 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
- The effect of loving-kindness meditation on positive emotions: a meta-analytic review Frontiers in Psychology November 3, 2015
- Loving‐Kindness Meditation for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: A Pilot Study Journal of Traumatic Stress July 25, 2013
and 8 more in the library