Mindfulness-based interventions in the workplace: An inclusive systematic review and meta-analysis of their impact upon wellbeing
Tim Lomas, Joan Carles Medina, Itai Ivtzan, Silke Rupprecht, Francisco José Eiroá‐Orosa
The Journal of Positive Psychology September 30, 2018 DOI: 10.1080/17439760.2018.1519588 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Meta-analysis Randomized Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Employees across all occupations |
| Intervention | Mindfulness-based interventions |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Citations | 236 |
| Key findings | Mindfulness-based interventions showed moderate effects on reducing stress, anxiety, distress, depression, and burnout, and moderate to small effects on improving health, job performance, compassion and empathy, mindfulness, and positive wellbeing, with no effect on emotional regulation. The authors caution that study quality was inconsistent and more high-quality trials are needed. |
Abstract
Given the demanding nature of many professions, efforts are ongoing to develop initiatives to improve occupational wellbeing, including mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs). To assess the efficacy of MBIs, meta-analytic procedures were conducted on 35 randomized controlled trials derived from an earlier inclusive systematic literature search (covering all occupations, MBIs, and wellbeing-related outcomes). Mindfulness had moderate effects on deficit-based outcomes such as stress (SMD = −0.57), anxiety (SMD = −0.57), distress (SMD = −0.56), depression (SMD = −0.48), and burnout (SMD = −0.36), and moderate to small effects on asset-based outcomes like health (SMD = 0.63), job performance (SMD = 0.43), compassion and empathy (SMD = 0.42), mindfulness (SMD = 0.39), and positive wellbeing (SMD = 0.36), while no effects were observed for emotional regulation. However, the quality of the studies was inconsistent, suggesting more high-quality randomised controlled trials are needed.