Autonomic responses to stress: the effects of progressive relaxation, the relaxation response, and expectancy of relief.
B W Bradley, T R McCanne
Biofeedback and self-regulation June 1981 DOI: 10.1007/bf00998872 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Randomized controlled trial Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 48 |
| Population | Male subjects with no previous meditative experience |
| Interventions | Progressive relaxation no-treatment control |
| Duration | Four sessions on consecutive days |
| Measures | Heart rate, electrodermal responding |
| Key findings | Expectations about a technique's effectiveness appeared to influence heart rate during stress: heart rate was lower before the stressful film for progressive-relaxation participants given positive expectations, and lower during the film for relaxation-response meditation participants given positive expectations. The authors suggest meditative treatments in general do not reduce stress responding as effectively as previously proposed. |
Abstract
Forty-eight male subjects with no previous meditative experience engaged in either progressive relaxation (PR), a meditative treatment designed to induce the relaxation response (RR), or a no-treatment control experience (C) during four sessions on consecutive days. Negative expectations regarding the effectiveness of each technique for reducing physiological responses to stress were induced for half of the subjects in each treatment condition, and positive expectations were induced for the other half. Subjects viewed a stressful film following practice of their technique during the first and fourth sessions. Heart rate and electrodermal responding were recorded continuously during practice of the techniques and during the stressful film throughout the first and fourth sessions. Results indicated lowered heart rate levels prior to the film for subjects in the PR-positive expectancy condition and during the film for subjects in the RR-positive expectancy condition. It is suggested that subjects' expectancies concerning meditation may affect cardiovascular responding during stress, although meditative treatments in general do not appear to reduce stress responding as effectively as previously suggested.
Citations in the library
Cited by 5
- Recovery from stress: an experimental examination of focused attention meditation in novices. Journal of Behavioral Medicine May 30, 2018
- Well-being and the worshipper: a scientific perspective of selected contemplative practices in Islam March 22, 2017
- A controlled study of the effects of the Transcendental Meditation program on cardiovascular reactivity and ambulatory blood pressure. International Journal of Neuroscience January 1997
- An analogue study of the initial carryover effects of meditation, hypnosis, and relaxation using native college students. Biofeedback and self-regulation June 1991
- Effects of expectancy on physiological responsivity in novice meditators. Biological Psychology September 1, 1985
Cites 6
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and 1 more in the library