Does your mindfulness benefit others? A systematic review and meta‐analysis of the link between mindfulness and prosocial behaviour
James N. Donald, Baljinder K Sahdra, Brooke van Zanden, Jasper J. Duineveld, Paul W. B. Atkins, S. Marshall, Joseph Ciarrochi
British Journal of Psychology August 9, 2018 DOI: 10.1111/bjop.12338 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Meta-analysis Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 17,241 |
| Population | Participants in studies of mindfulness and prosocial behavior |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Key findings | Mindfulness is positively related to prosocial behavior, with a pooled effect of d = .73 for correlational studies and d = .51 for intervention studies. |
Abstract
Mindfulness-based meditation practices have received substantial scientific attention in recent years. Mindfulness has been shown to bring many psychological benefits to the individual, but much less is known about whether these benefits extend to others. This meta-analysis reviewed the link between mindfulness - as both a personality variable and an intervention - and prosocial behaviour. A literature search produced 31 eligible studies (N = 17,241) and 73 effect sizes. Meta-analyses were conducted using mixed-effects structural equation models to examine pooled effects and potential moderators of these effects. We found a positive pooled effect between mindfulness and prosocial behaviour for both correlational (d = .73 CI 95% [0.51 to 0.96]) and intervention studies (d = .51 CI 95% [0.37 to 0.66]). For the latter, medium-sized effects were obtained across varying meditation types and intensities, and across gender and age categories. Preliminary evidence is presented regarding potential mediators of these effects. Although we found that mindfulness is positively related to prosociality, further research is needed to examine the mediators of this link and the contexts in which it is most pronounced.
Comparable studies
Other systematic reviews and meta-analyses on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Meditation Programs for Psychological Stress and Well-being Diverse adult clinical populations | 2014 | Meta-analysis | n = 3,515 |
| Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction for Stress Management in Healthy People: A Review and Meta-Analysis Healthy subjects | 2009 | Systematic review and meta-analysis | |
| The psychological effects of meditation: A meta-analysis. Nonclinical groups of adult meditators | 2012 | Meta-analysis | n = 163 |
| Efficacy of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy in Prevention of Depressive Relapse Adults with recurrent depression in full or partial remission | 2016 | Meta-analysis of individual patient data from randomized controlled trials | n = 1,258 |
| Mindfulness‐Based Stress Reduction and Mindfulness‐Based Cognitive Therapy – a systematic review of randomized controlled trials | 2011 | Systematic review |
Citations in the library
Cited by 108
- Mindfulness-based interventions: an overall review British Medical Bulletin April 21, 2021
- The Empirical Status of Mindfulness-Based Interventions: A Systematic Review of 44 Meta-Analyses of Randomized Controlled Trials Perspectives on Psychological Science February 16, 2021
- The Way Forward in Mindfulness and Sustainability: a Critical Review and Research Agenda Journal of Cognitive Enhancement July 2, 2020
- Testing the Efficacy of a Multicomponent, Self-Guided, Smartphone-Based Meditation App: Three-Armed Randomized Controlled Trial JMIR Mental Health November 27, 2020
- The (In)flexible self: Psychopathology, mindfulness, and neuroscience. International journal of clinical and health psychology : IJCHP 2023
and 103 more in the library
Cites 35
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- Using Self-Report Assessment Methods to Explore Facets of Mindfulness Assessment January 27, 2006
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- Mechanisms of mindfulness Journal of Clinical Psychology December 29, 2005
- How Does Mindfulness Meditation Work? Proposing Mechanisms of Action From a Conceptual and Neural Perspective Perspectives on Psychological Science October 14, 2011
and 30 more in the library