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Effect of meditation on online college students’ stress and anxiety levels

Carola Grebitus, Donna DiNunzio Martens

Q Open February 13, 2026 DOI: 10.1093/qopen/qoag003 (opens in new tab)

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Study at a glance

AI-extracted from the abstract
Characteristics Pre-post study Peer reviewed
Population College students at a large, public US university enrolled in an online business course
Intervention meditation
Topics Anxiety Meditation
Key points Integrating meditation into an online business course lowers students' reported stress and anxiety levels.

Abstract

Abstract College students, especially online college students, suffer from a great amount of stress and anxiety and often feel overwhelmed by the tasks they face. One proven tool to lower stress levels is meditation. Hence, the main objective of this research is to investigate whether incorporating meditation into an online business course decreases online students’ reported stress and anxiety levels. Data on students’ reported stress and anxiety levels at a large, public US university were collected before and after participation in the meditation. Findings suggest that students experience elevated levels of stress and anxiety, and integrating meditation lowers students’ reported stress and anxiety levels in an online learning environment.

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