Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Impact of a Tibetan Buddhist Meditation Course and Application of Related Modern Contemplative Practices on College Students’ Psychological Well-being: a Pilot Study

  • ORIGINAL PAPER
  • Published:
Mindfulness Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The intent of the current research was to explore the impact of a specific Tibetan Buddhist meditation course containing a lab for applied practice of modern techniques upon psychological well-being in college students. We evaluated the impact of a semester-long undergraduate Tibetan Buddhist meditation course on the psychological well-being of 205 students and assessed whether changes in well-being were mediated by mindfulness. The course was composed of two weekly lectures regarding the tradition and modern applications of meditation, respectively, and a weekly lab in which the students were taught a survey of related modern contemplative techniques to practice. Students were assessed at the beginning, middle, and end of the course, and their time spent practicing the exercises were prospectively recorded. Participants reported statistically significant increases in self-reported mindfulness, self-compassion, and positive coping and significant decreases in self-reported anxiety. Mindfulness was a significant predictor of changes in self-compassion and anxiety. These results suggest that a large lecture course with weekly meditation practice can have a positive impact on the psychological well-being of students and that some of these changes are mediated by mindfulness.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Baer, R. A., Smith, G. T., Lykins, E., Button, D., Krietemeyer, J., Sauer, S., et al. (2008). Construct validity of the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire in meditating and nonmeditating samples. Assessment, 15(3), 329–342.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bishop, S., Lau, M., Shapiro, S., Carlson, L., Anderson, N., Carmody, J., et al. (2004). Mindfulness: a proposed operational definition. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice, 11(3), 230–241.

    Google Scholar 

  • Brown, K. W., & Ryan, R. M. (2003). The benefits of being present: mindfulness and its role in psychological well-being. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 84(4), 822–848.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Burns, J., Lee, R., & Brown, L. (2011). The effect of meditation on self-reported measures of stress, anxiety, depression, and perfectionism in a college population. Journal of College Student Psychotherapy, 25(2), 132–144.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chiesa, A., & Serretti, A. (2009). Mindfulness-based stress reduction for stress management in healthy people: a review and meta-analysis. Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, 15(5), 593–600.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Davidson, R. J., Kabat-Zinn, J., Schumacher, J., Rosenkranz, M., Muller, D., Santorelli, S. F., et al. (2003). Alterations in brain and immune function produced by mindfulness meditation. Psychosomatic Medicine, 65(4), 564–570.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Deckro, G. R., Ballinger, K. M., Hoyt, M., Wilcher, M., Dusek, J., Myers, P., et al. (2002). The evaluation of a mind/body intervention to reduce psychological distress and perceived stress in college students. Journal of American College Health, 50(6), 281–287.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Duerr, M. (2004). A powerful silence: the role of meditation and other contemplative practices in American life and work. Northampton, MA: The Center for Contemplative Mind in Society.

    Google Scholar 

  • Garnefski, N., & Kraaij, V. (2006). Cognitive emotion regulation questionnaire—development of a short 18-item version (CERQ-short). Personality and Individual Differences, 41(6), 1045–1053.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Garnefski, N., & Kraaij, V. (2007). The cognitive emotion regulation questionnaire: psychometric features and prospective relationships with depression and anxiety in adults. European Journal of Psychological Assessment, 23(3), 141–149.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Germer, C., & Neff, K. (2013). Self-compassion in clinical practice. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 69(8), 856–867.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hutcherson, C. A., Seppala, E. M., & Gross, J. J. (2008). Loving-kindness meditation increases social connectedness. Emotion, 8(5), 720–724.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Jha, A. P., Krompinger, J., & Baime, M. J. (2007). Mindfulness training modifies subsystems of attention. Cognitive, Affective, & Behavioral Neuroscience, 7(2), 109–119.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Julian, L. (2011). Measures of anxiety: state-trait anxiety inventory (STAI), Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale-Anxiety (HADS-A). Arthritis Care & Research, 63(Supplement Sll), S467–S472.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kabat-Zinn, J. (1990). Full catastrophe living: using the wisdom of your body and mind to face stress, pain, and illness. New York: Delacorte.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lazar, S. W., Kerr, C. E., Wasserman, R. H., Gray, J. R., Greve, D. N., Treadway, M. T., et al. (2005). Meditation experience is associated with increased cortical thickness. Neuroreport, 16(17), 1893–1897.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Malouff, J. M., & Schutte, N. S. (1986). Development and validation of a measure of irrational belief. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 54(6), 860–862.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Mind and Life Education Research Network (MLERN). (2012). Contemplative practices and mental training: prospects for American education. Child Development Perspectives, 6(2), 146–153.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Neff, K. (2003). The development and validation of a scale to measure self-compassion. Self and Identity, 2(3), 223–250.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nidich, S. I., Rainforth, M. V., Haaga, D. A. F., Hagelin, J., Salerno, J. W., Travis, F., et al. (2009). A randomized controlled trial on effects of the transcendental meditation program on blood pressure, psychological distress, and coping in young adults. American Journal of Hypertension, 22(12), 1326–1331.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Oman, D., Shapiro, S. L., Thoresen, C. E., Flinders, T., Driskill, J. D., & Plante, T. G. (2007). Learning from spiritual models and meditation: a randomized evaluation of a college course. Pastoral Psychology, 55(4), 473–493.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Oman, D., Shapiro, S. L., Thoresen, C. E., Plante, T. G., & Flinders, T. (2008). Meditation lowers stress and supports forgiveness among college students: a randomized controlled trial. Journal of American College Health, 56(5), 569–578.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Pommier, E. A. (2011). The compassion scale. Dissertation Abstracts International, 72, 1174.

    Google Scholar 

  • Raudenbush, S. W., & Bryk, A. S. (2002). Hierarchical linear models: applications and data analysis methods (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

    Google Scholar 

  • Roberts-Wolfe, D., Sacchet, M. D., Hastings, E., Roth, H., & Britton, W. (2012). Mindfulness training alters emotional memory recall compared to active controls: support for an emotional information processing model of mindfulness. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 6(15).

  • Rosenzweig, S., Reibel, D. K., Greeson, J. M., Brainard, G. C., & Hojat, M. (2003). Mindfulness-based stress reduction lowers psychological distress in medical students. Teaching and Learning in Medicine, 15(2), 88–92.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Roth, H. (2014). A pedagogy for the new field of contemplative studies. In O. Gunnlaugson, E. W. Sarath, C. Scott, & H. Bai (Eds.), Contemplative approaches to learning and inquiry across disciplines (pp. 97–118). Albany: SUNY Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ryff, C. D., & Keyes, C. L. M. (1995). The structure of psychological well-being revisited. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 69(4), 719–727.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sears, S., & Kraus, S. (2009). I think therefore I am: cognitive distortions and coping style as mediators for the effects of mindfulness meditation on anxiety, positive and negative affect, and hope. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 65(6), 561–573.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Shapiro, S. L., Brown, K. W., & Biegel, G. M. (2007). Teaching self-care to caregivers: effects of mindfulness-based stress reduction on the mental health of therapists in training. Training and Education in Professional Psychology, 1(2), 105–115.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shapiro, S. L., Brown, K. W., & Astin, J. A. (2008). Toward the integration of meditation into higher education: a review of research. Northampton, MA: The Center for Contemplative Mind in Society.

    Google Scholar 

  • Silverstein, R. G., Brown, A. C. H., Roth, H. D., & Britton, W. B. (2011). Effects of mindfulness training on body awareness to sexual stimuli: implications for female sexual dysfunction. Psychosomatic Medicine, 73(9), 817–825.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Spielberger, C. D., Gorsuch, R. L., Lushene, R., Vagg, P. R., & Jacobs, G. A. (1983). Manual for the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Watson, D., Clark, L., & Tellegen, A. (1988). Development and validation of brief measures of positive and negative affect: the PANAS scales. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 54(6), 1063–1070.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Zenner, C., Herrnleben-Kurz, S., & Walach, H. (2014). Mindfulness-based interventions in schools—a systematic review and meta-analysis. Frontiers in Psychology, 5(603).

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Virginia School of Medicine, Box 800623, Charlottesville, VA, USA

    Jennifer Kim Penberthy, Susanna Williams, Ngan Le & John Schorling

  2. Department of Psychiatry and Neurobehavioral Sciences, University of Virginia School of Medicine, PO Box 800623, Charlottesville, VA, USA

    Jennifer Kim Penberthy

  3. Department of Psychology, University of North Texas, Denton, TX, USA

    Joshua N. Hook & Jacob Bloch

  4. University College Cork School of Medicine, Cork, Ireland

    Justin Forsyth

  5. Department of Psychology, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC, USA

    Jennifer Morgan Penberthy

  6. Department of Religion, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA

    David Germano & Kurtis Schaeffer

Authors
  1. Jennifer Kim Penberthy
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Susanna Williams
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Joshua N. Hook
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Ngan Le
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Jacob Bloch
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Justin Forsyth
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. Jennifer Morgan Penberthy
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  8. David Germano
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  9. Kurtis Schaeffer
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  10. John Schorling
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jennifer Kim Penberthy.

Ethics declarations

This study was approved by the UVA Institutional Review Board-Social and Behavioral Sciences and has been performed in accordance with the ethical standards of the 1964 Declaration of Helsinki and its later amendments. All persons involved participated voluntarily and provided their consent prior to their inclusion in the study.

Conflict of Interest

All authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Penberthy, J.K., Williams, S., Hook, J.N. et al. Impact of a Tibetan Buddhist Meditation Course and Application of Related Modern Contemplative Practices on College Students’ Psychological Well-being: a Pilot Study. Mindfulness 8, 911–919 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-016-0665-y

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-016-0665-y

Keywords

Search

Navigation