Mindfulness increases prosocial responses toward ostracized strangers through empathic concern.
Daniel R. Berry, Athena H. Cairo, Robert J. Goodman, Jordan T. Quaglia, Jeffrey Green, Kirk Warren Brown
Journal of Experimental Psychology General 2018 DOI: 10.1037/xge0000392 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Four studies: cross-sectional (Study 1) and experimental (Studies 2-4) Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Meditation |
| Keywords | Prosocial behavior Empathic concern Psycinfo Empathy Developmental psychology Psychotherapist Perspective-taking |
| Citations | 176 |
| Key findings | Mindfulness, both dispositional and briefly instructed, fosters prosocial behavior toward ostracized strangers, mediated by empathic concern. |
Abstract
Four studies tested the proposition that mindfulness and its training fostered prosociality toward ostracized strangers. In discovery Study 1, dispositional mindfulness predicted greater empathic concern for, and more helping behavior toward, an ostracized stranger. Using an experimental design, Study 2 revealed that very briefly instructed mindfulness, relative to active control instructions, also promoted prosocial responsiveness to an ostracized stranger. Study 3 ruled out alternative explanations for this effect of mindfulness, showing that it did not promote empathic anger or perpetrator punishment, nor that the control training reduced prosocial responsiveness toward an ostracized stranger rather than mindfulness increasing it. Study 4 further ruled out the alternative explanation of relaxation in the experimental effects of mindfulness. In all studies, empathic concern mediated the relation between mindfulness and one or both of the helping behavior outcomes. Meta-analyses of the four studies revealed stable, medium sized effects of mindfulness instruction on prosocial emotions and prosocial behavior. Together these findings inform about circumstances in which mindfulness may increase prosocial responsiveness, and deepen our understanding of the motivational bases of prosociality. (PsycINFO Database Record
Comparable studies
Other experimental studies on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| The benefits of being present: Mindfulness and its role in psychological well-being. Cancer patients (clinical intervention study) | 2003 | Mixed methods: scale development, correlational, quasi-experimental, laboratory, experience-sampling, and clinical intervention study | |
| Loving-kindness meditation increases social connectedness. | 2008 | Controlled laboratory experiment | |
| Mindfulness and mind-wandering: Finding convergence through opposing constructs. | 2012 | Two studies: correlational study and experimental study | |
| Mental Training Enhances Attentional Stability: Neural and Behavioral Evidence | 2009 | Experimental study | |
| Mindfulness meditation and substance use in an incarcerated population. Incarcerated population | 2006 | Quasi-experimental with treatment-as-usual control condition |
Citations in the library
Cited by 34
- How mindfulness training promotes positive emotions: Dismantling acceptance skills training in two randomized controlled trials. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology December 1, 2018
- The (In)flexible self: Psychopathology, mindfulness, and neuroscience. International journal of clinical and health psychology : IJCHP 2023
- Mind full of kindness: self-awareness, self-regulation, and self-transcendence as vehicles for compassion. BMC Psychology July 29, 2022
- Short-Term Training in Mindfulness Predicts Helping Behavior Toward Racial Ingroup and Outgroup Members Social Psychological and Personality Science November 18, 2021
- Wisdom-Based Buddhist-Derived Meditation Practices for Prosocial Behaviour: A Systematic Review Mindfulness March 1, 2024
and 29 more in the library
Cites 20
- The benefits of being present: Mindfulness and its role in psychological well-being. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 2003
- Using Self-Report Assessment Methods to Explore Facets of Mindfulness Assessment January 27, 2006
- How Does Mindfulness Meditation Work? Proposing Mechanisms of Action From a Conceptual and Neural Perspective Perspectives on Psychological Science October 14, 2011
- A randomized controlled trial of mindfulness meditation versus relaxation training: Effects on distress, positive states of mind, rumination, and distraction Annals of Behavioral Medicine February 1, 2007
- The psychological effects of meditation: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin May 14, 2012
and 15 more in the library