Mindfulness and Legal Practice: A Preliminary Study of the Effects of Mindfulness Meditation and Stress Reduction in Lawyers
John Paul Minda, Jeena Cho, Emily Nielsen, Mengxiao Zhang
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Pre-post intervention study |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 46 |
| Population | Lawyers |
| Intervention | Mindfulness meditation |
| Duration | Eight week program |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Key points | An eight-week mindfulness meditation program for lawyers significantly reduced self-described depression, anxiety, stress, and negative mood, and increased positive mood and psychological resilience; participants also viewed themselves as more effective at work. The authors argue that much more research is needed to understand these benefits. |
Abstract
Research has shown that lawyers often experience symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress in their lives. Mindfulness meditation may be an effective way to reduce the many negative effects associated with work stress. We asked a group of 46 lawyers to participate in an eight week mindfulness meditation program that was designed for lawyers. The mindfulness program was based on The Anxious Lawyer by Cho and Gifford (2016) and guided audio meditations were made available online. Participants were assessed before beginning the program and again when the program was completed. The results indicated that the mindfulness meditation program significantly reduced self-described depression, anxiety, stress, and negative mood. The meditation program also increased positive mood and psychological resilience. As well, participants in the program viewed themselves as being more effective at their work. Despite the strong effects observed in this study, we argue that much more research is needed to understand these benefits.
Comparable studies
Other non-randomized and open-label trials on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction in Relation to Quality of Life, Mood, Symptoms of Stress, and Immune Parameters in Breast and Prostate Cancer Outpatients Early-stage breast and prostate cancer patients | 2003 | Pre-post intervention study | n = 59 |
| Exploring self‐compassion and empathy in the context of mindfulness‐based stress reduction (MBSR) Community sample | 2010 | Pre-post intervention study | |
| Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Lowers Psychological Distress In Medical Students Second-year medical students | 2003 | Prospective nonrandomized cohort-controlled study | n = 302 |
| Intensive meditation training, immune cell telomerase activity, and psychological mediators. Retreat participants and matched controls | 2011 | Controlled trial with wait-list control group | n = 60 |
| The Effectiveness of Mindfulness Training for Children with ADHD and Mindful Parenting for their Parents Children aged 8-12 with ADHD and their parents | 2011 | Within-group waitlist controlled trial | n = 22 |
Citations in the library
Cites 4
- The benefits of being present: Mindfulness and its role in psychological well-being. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 2003
- Alterations in Brain and Immune Function Produced by Mindfulness Meditation Psychosomatic Medicine July 1, 2003
- Meditation, mindfulness and cognitive flexibility. Consciousness and Cognition March 2009
- Influence of a mindfulness meditation-based stress reduction intervention on rates of skin clearing in patients with moderate to severe psoriasis undergoing phototherapy (UVB) and photochemotherapy (PUVA). Psychosomatic Medicine 1998