Sitting Meditation and Mindfulness Effects on Overall Anxiety and Test Anxiety Among College Students
John E. Lothes, Sara Matney, Zayne Naseer, Riley Pfyffer
Mind, Brain, and Education February 1, 2023 DOI: 10.1111/mbe.12344 (opens in new tab)
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractCollege students who practiced online sitting meditation for five weeks showed reduced test anxiety and overall anxiety, as did a wait-list control group that later completed the same mindfulness practices. Both groups also reported increased mindfulness skills. The findings suggest that mindfulness may help lower anxiety and test anxiety in college students, but more research is needed to clarify the effects.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Randomized controlled trial Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 20 |
| Population | College students |
| Intervention | sitting meditation |
| Duration | 5-week intervention |
| Key finding | Both the sitting meditation group and the wait-list control group showed significant within-group reductions in test anxiety, overall anxiety, and DASS scores after completing the mindfulness intervention. |
Abstract
AbstractResearch shows that mindfulness interventions for test anxiety in a college student population are beneficial (Lothes, Matney, & Naseer, 2022). This study assessed the effects of online mindfulness practices over a 5‐week period on anxiety and test anxiety in college students. Participants included 20 students that were randomly assigned to either a sitting meditation or a wait list control (WLC). A weekly schedule of mindfulness practices was given to participants to complete on their own for 5 weeks. The WLC did not do any mindfulness for the first 5 weeks. Participants in the both conditions showed significant within‐group reductions in test anxiety, overall anxiety, and DASS scores during their mindfulness interventions. Both groups also showed significant increases in FFMQ scores. Mindfulness may play a role in the reduction of anxiety and test anxiety. Further research is needed to assess how mindfulness may affect anxiety and test anxiety in college students.