Individual Differences in Meditation Outcomes
Ivana Buric, Inti A. Brazil, Valerie van Mulukom
The Oxford Handbook of Meditation November 10, 2020 DOI: 10.1093/oxfordhb/9780198808640.013.26 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Review Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Meditation |
| Key findings | The authors conclude that evidence linking participant characteristics to meditation outcomes is sparse and methodologically limited across personality, biological, illness-severity, and demographic domains. They recommend multilevel models and meta-regression to better integrate individual-difference variables into meditation research. |
Abstract
Abstract Meditation generally has small to moderate effects on health and well-being, but some people experience greater benefits from meditation than others. What are the characteristics of the study participants or meditation students that lead to beneficial outcomes of meditation? This chapter adopts a multilevel approach to evaluate the evidence on the relationship between participant characteristics and individual differences in meditation outcomes across four sources of variability: personality and other psychological variables, biological variables, illness severity, and demographic factors. Research in the area is sparse and has several methodological shortcomings, thus the authors recommend the use of multilevel models and meta-regression as ways of properly incorporating the study of individual differences with other variables.
Comparable studies
Other narrative reviews on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mindfulness training as a clinical intervention: A conceptual and empirical review. Clinical populations | 2003 | Review | |
| Mindfulness: Theoretical Foundations and Evidence for its Salutary Effects | 2007 | Review | |
| Mindfulness Interventions | 2016 | Review | |
| Mind the Hype: A Critical Evaluation and Prescriptive Agenda for Research on Mindfulness and Meditation | 2017 | Review | |
| Mindfulness and acceptance: expanding the cognitive-behavioral tradition | 2005 | Review |
Citations in the library
Cited by 3
- Teacher-Guided vs. Self-Guided Mindfulness in Higher Education: Comparable Effects on Emotion Regulation, Trait Mindfulness, and Adverse Effects Mindfulness March 1, 2026
- Mindfulness in Schools: A Pilot Cluster Randomised Trial of a Novel Blended Intervention for Early Adolescents Mindfulness July 1, 2026
- Can we Predict Who Benefits Most From Mindfulness? Exploring Baseline Variables Influencing Responses to Mindfulness-Based Interventions in Young Adults Mindfulness August 1, 2025
Cites 25
- The benefits of being present: Mindfulness and its role in psychological well-being. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 2003
- Using Self-Report Assessment Methods to Explore Facets of Mindfulness Assessment January 27, 2006
- The toronto mindfulness scale: Development and validation Journal of Clinical Psychology 2006
- The psychological effects of meditation: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin May 14, 2012
- The moderation of Mindfulness‐based stress reduction effects by trait mindfulness: Results from a randomized controlled trial Journal of Clinical Psychology December 22, 2010
and 20 more in the library