Enhancing Visual Perception and Motor Accuracy among School Children through a Mindfulness and Compassion Program.
Ricardo Tarrasch, Lilach Margalit-Shalom, Rony Berger
Frontiers in Psychology February 24, 2017 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2017.00281 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Controlled intervention study with repeated measures Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 216 |
| Population | 4th and 5th grade students |
| Duration | 24 weekly sessions |
| Topics | Anxiety Meditation |
| Keywords | Children Visual perception Compassion Motor accuracy |
| Key points | Children who received the 24-week "Call to Care-Israel" mindfulness/compassion program showed significant improvements in visual perception, motor accuracy, self-reported mindfulness, and anxiety relative to controls, with post hoc tests showing gains only in the program group. Improvements in motor accuracy were correlated with reduced anxiety and increased mindfulness. The authors suggest these basic skill gains may translate into better academic achievement. |
Abstract
The present study assessed the effects of the mindfulness/compassion cultivating program: "Call to Care-Israel" on the performance in visual perception (VP) and motor accuracy, as well as on anxiety levels and self-reported mindfulness among 4th and 5th grade students. One hundred and thirty-eight children participated in the program for 24 weekly sessions, while 78 children served as controls. Repeated measures ANOVA's yielded significant interactions between time of measurement and group for VP, motor accuracy, reported mindfulness, and anxiety. Post hoc tests revealed significant improvements in the four aforementioned measures in the experimental group only. In addition, significant correlations were obtained between the improvement in motor accuracy and the reduction in anxiety and the increase in mindfulness. Since VP and motor accuracy are basic skills associated with quantifiable academic characteristics, such as reading and mathematical abilities, the results may suggest that mindfulness practice has the ability to improve academic achievements.
Citations in the library
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- A Mindfulness-Based Intervention for Students With Psychiatric Disorders in a Special Education Curriculum: A Series of n-of-1 Trials on Internalized and Externalized Symptoms Frontiers in Education September 3, 2018
- Addressing Ethical Concerns in Implementing Mindfulness-Based Interventions in Educational Setting Mindfulness August 1, 2024
- Effects of Kindness- and Compassion-Based Meditation on Wellbeing, Prosociality, and Cognitive Functioning in Children and Adolescents: a Systematic Review Mindfulness September 1, 2022
- Exploring the Effects of Meditation Techniques Used by Mindfulness-Based Programs on the Cognitive, Social-Emotional, and Academic Skills of Children: A Systematic Review. Frontiers in Psychology November 12, 2021
- Better Cognitive Performance Is Associated With the Combination of High Trait Mindfulness and Low Trait Anxiety. Frontiers in Psychology May 3, 2018
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