The Influence of Spiritual Transcendence on a Centering Meditation: A Growth Curve Analysis of Resilience
Stephanie Dorais, Daniel Gutiérrez
Religions July 26, 2021 DOI: 10.3390/rel12080573 (opens in new tab) via OpenAlex
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractA 4-week randomized controlled trial tested whether a centering-prayer-based spiritual meditation increases resilience. The treatment group practiced the meditation twice daily. Growth-curve modeling showed that the treatment group had a statistically significant increase in resilience compared with the waitlist control group. Spiritual transcendence significantly strengthened the effect of the meditation on resilience over time. The authors discuss limitations and implications for research and practice.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Randomized controlled trial Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 150 |
| Population | Participants in a 4-week randomized controlled trial |
| Intervention | centering meditation |
| Dose | twice a day |
| Duration | 4-week intervention |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Keywords | Transcendence philosophy Prayer Psychological resilience Spiritual growth |
| Citations | 15 |
| Key finding | Centering meditation significantly increased resilience in the treatment group compared to the waitlist control group, and spiritual transcendence significantly potentiated this effect over time. |
Abstract
The authors longitudinally examined a spiritual meditation based on centering prayer. The study consisted of two primary aims: (1) to determine the effectiveness of centering meditation on increasing resilience and (2) to examine the temporal dynamics of spiritual transcendence on resilience during the meditation. Participants (n = 150) engaged in a 4-week randomized controlled trial, in which the treatment group practiced the centering meditation twice a day. The growth curve model includes a three-way interaction to determine if there were group effects in the relationship between spiritual transcendence and time. The interaction between treatment group, time, and spiritual transcendence was statistically significant in explaining the trajectory of resilience, p < 0.05. Based on the findings, the centering meditation was effective in statistically significantly increasing resilience in the treatment group compared to the waitlist control group. In addition, spiritual transcendence significantly potentiated the effect of centering meditation on improving resilience over time, p < 0.05. The authors discuss limitations and implications for research and practice of centering meditation.