A Kindness-Based Meditation Study for Promoting Interpersonal Functioning in First-Year College Students
First-year Students Face Interpersonal Challenges While Transitioning To College That Can Negatively Impact Academic And Psychosocial Functioning. There Is Currently A Need For Brief, Efficacious Programming To Address Such Problems. Accordingly, We Designed A One-Session Skills-Based Meditation Workshop For This Population., 62 Eligible Incoming College Students Were Randomized To The 90-Minute Workshop Or A Waitlist Control Group. Participants Completed Self-Report Measures Of Loneliness, Social Support, Compassion For Others, And Roommate Responsiveness Before Randomization And At The End Of The Semester., Workshop Participants Reported A Significant Within-Group Reduction In Loneliness Over The Semester, Along With Significantly Greater Semesters-End Roommate Responsiveness And Compassion For A Stranger In Distress Than Waitlisted Students., Findings Suggest That Participation In An Early Semester, Single-Session Meditation Workshop May Beneficially Influence Social And Emotional Outcomes For Incoming College Students. With More Research Support, This Workshop Could Be Integrated Into First- Year Student Programming.
Journal of Psychiatry and Cognitive Behaviour May 24, 2025 DOI: 10.29011/2574-7762.000097 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Randomized controlled trial Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 62 |
| Population | Incoming first-year college students |
| Intervention | Meditation workshop |
| Duration | 90-minute workshop; outcomes assessed at the end of the semester |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Key findings | Workshop participants showed a significant within-group reduction in loneliness across the semester and significantly greater semester-end roommate responsiveness and compassion for a stranger in distress than waitlisted students. The authors suggest a single early-semester meditation workshop may benefit social and emotional outcomes for incoming college students. |
Abstract
Objectives: First-year students face interpersonal challenges while transitioning to college that can negatively impact academic and psychosocial functioning.There is currently a need for brief, efficacious programming to address such problems.Accordingly, we designed a one-session skills-based meditation workshop for this population.Methods: 62 eligible incoming college students were randomized to the 90-minute workshop or a waitlist control group.Participants completed self-report measures of loneliness, social support, compassion for others, and roommate responsiveness before randomization and at the end of the semester.Results: Workshop participants reported a significant within-group reduction in loneliness over the semester, along with significantly greater semesters-end roommate responsiveness and compassion for a stranger in distress than waitlisted students.Conclusion: Findings suggest that participation in an early semester, single-session meditation workshop may beneficially influence social and emotional outcomes for incoming college students.With more research support, this workshop could be integrated into firstyear student programming.
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 |