The Group Effect of Transcendental Meditation on Peruvian Students in Home Isolation During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Lee Fergusson, Javier Ortiz Cabrejos, Anna Bonshek
Journal of Maharishi Vedic Research Institute July 1, 2023 DOI: 10.66743/tlgz4515 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Observational comparison study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 107 |
| Population | Indigenous students at Institución Educativa Privada Prescott in Puno, Peru, who practice Transcendental Meditation |
| Intervention | Transcendental Meditation |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Key findings | The authors report that both group meditation approaches—at school at the same time and place as part of the daily routine, or online at the same time of day from different places—were associated with favorable physical, cognitive, and emotional health and school performance before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. They describe the study as the first to consider home isolation's association with meditation in these students. |
Abstract
Approximately 2,000 indigenous students at Institución Educativa Privada Prescott in Puno, located in the Andes high on the Altiplano of Lake Titicaca, have been instructed in the Transcendental Meditation technique since 1996. In this study, we examine the impact of home isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic on physical, cognitive, and emotional health, and school performance for a group of 54 meditating students and contrast these results to a comparison group of 53 meditating students who reported their health and learning prior to the pandemic. The study is the first to consider the association of home isolation on students practicing meditation in a group: A) at the same time of day and in the same place as part of their daily school routine; or B) during online sessions at the same time of day but in a different place. Findings indicate both approaches to group meditation before and during the COVID-19 pandemic produced favourable results for student health and school performance.
Comparable studies
Other observational and cohort studies on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Using Self-Report Assessment Methods to Explore Facets of Mindfulness Undergraduate students | 2006 | Observational cohort | |
| Effectiveness of a meditation-based stress reduction program in the treatment of anxiety disorders Patients with generalized anxiety disorder or panic disorder with or without agoraphobia | 1992 | Observational cohort | n = 22 |
| Meditation experience is associated with increased cortical thickness Participants with extensive Insight meditation experience and matched controls | 2005 | Observational cohort | n = 20 |
| Meditation experience is associated with differences in default mode network activity and connectivity Experienced meditators and matched meditation-naive controls | 2011 | Observational cohort | |
| Long-term meditators self-induce high-amplitude gamma synchrony during mental practice Long-term Buddhist practitioners and controls | 2004 | Observational cohort |
Citations in the library
Cites 2
- Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction and Transcendental Meditation: Current State of Research Journal of Patient-Centered Research and Reviews August 10, 2015
- Comparison of coherence, amplitude, and eLORETA patterns during Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi practice. International Journal of Psychophysiology September 1, 2011