A Qualitative Meta-Analysis of Participants’ Experiences in Meditation Intervention Programs: Focusing on Noblit & Hare’s Meta-Ethnographic Approach
Gwi-Og Jeong
The Korean Association for the Study of Religious Education March 31, 2026 DOI: 10.58601/kjre.2026.03.30.07 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Qualitative meta-analysis (meta-ethnography) Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Participants of Buddhist meditation intervention programs from eight qualitative studies |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Key findings | Identifies three superordinate themes—deepening self-awareness and insight, construction of coping strategies and practice systems, and changes in relational and social connections—and proposes that meditation interventions generate 'Embodied Transformation' through a bottom-up pathway, expanding to a 'Relational Mindfulness' model. |
Abstract
[Objective] This study conducted a qualitative meta-analysis using Noblit and Hare's meta-ethnography to comprehensively understand the experiences and meanings of meditation intervention program participants. [Contents] Eight qualitative studies on Buddhist meditation published between 2024 and 2025 were selected from Korean academic databases. Following the seven-stage procedure, core concepts were reciprocally translated and synthesized. Three superordinate themes emerged: deepening of self-awareness and insight, construction of coping strategies and practice systems, and changes in relational and social connections, along with 7 subthemes and 21 descriptive themes. Changes followed a sequential yet cyclical process from internal awareness through coping strategy development to relational expansion. [Conclusions] Meditation interventions generate ‘Embodied Transformation’ via a bottom-up pathway from bodily awareness to emotional, cognitive, and behavioral change. A ‘Relational Mindfulness’ model was identified, expanding individual practice to collective mindfulness. This study proposes connections with Gross’s emotion regulation model and Seligman’s PERMA model, and presents a stage-based intervention model for meditation program design and clinical application.
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 |