The impact of systematic guided meditation on writing self-efficacy, achievement, and perceptions: A quasi-experimental investigation focusing on breathing, music, and monolingual affirmations
Sevcan Bayraktar Çepni, Şakire Erbay Çetinkaya
Moderna Språk October 17, 2025 DOI: 10.58221/mosp.v119i2.48451 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Pre-test-post-test randomized experimental design with qualitative interviews Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 69 |
| Population | Pre-service English teachers of Turkish origin |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Key findings | Guided meditation produced no statistically significant changes in writing self-efficacy or academic performance, but interview data suggest the affirmations enhanced participants' self-efficacy for self-regulation, with reports of feeling at ease, greater self-assurance, and increased drive to write. The authors contend that sustaining this drive depends on consistent implementation and personal effort. |
Abstract
Responding to the recent calls to investigate the impact of guided meditation practices for foreign language classrooms with rigorous research designs, the current research with a pre-test-post-test research design empowered with qualitative data investigated the impact of a classroom-based systematic guided meditation on the participants' writing self-efficacy, academic performance, and perceptions. The total sample was 69 pre-service English teachers with Turkish origin randomly assigned into one experimental group exposed to sessions with background relaxing music, one experimental group exposed to the treatment with sole human voice, and one control group without any meditation practice. The statistical analysis of pre and post-test scores did not reveal significant variations. However, yielding more comprehensive insights, the one-to-one interview data support the conclusion that these affirmations enhanced their self-efficacy for self-regulation. The analysis revealed consistent patterns, including feeling at ease, experiencing a boost in self-assurance through affirmations, and being more driven to engage in writing activities. Nevertheless, this drive's sustainability and long-term effects rely on its consistent implementation and personal endeavor. Practical implications are offered in the end to help learners be aware of their own minds and the moment.
Comparable studies
Other randomized controlled trials on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alterations in Brain and Immune Function Produced by Mindfulness Meditation Healthy employees in a work environment | 2003 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 41 |
| Prevention of relapse/recurrence in major depression by mindfulness-based cognitive therapy. Recovered recurrently depressed patients | 2000 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 145 |
| Open hearts build lives: Positive emotions, induced through loving-kindness meditation, build consequential personal resources. Working adults | 2008 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 139 |
| Short-term meditation training improves attention and self-regulation Undergraduate Chinese students | 2007 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 40 |
| Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Depression: Replication and Exploration of Differential Relapse Prevention Effects. Recovered recurrently depressed patients | 2004 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 73 |
Citations in the library
Cites 4
- Mindfulness-based interventions: an overall review British Medical Bulletin April 21, 2021
- Mindfulness and foreign language learners’ self-perceived proficiency: the mediating roles of anxiety and burnout Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development January 24, 2023
- Mindfulness, self-efficacy, and self-regulation as predictors of psychological well-being in EFL learners Frontiers in Psychology March 27, 2024
- What Do Meditators Do When They Meditate? Proposing a Novel Basis for Future Meditation Research Mindfulness November 30, 2020