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College student anxiety is a rising recurrent problem. It is the foremost diagnosed and treated mental health condition and has many negative consequences, including attrition and course failure. Mindfulness meditation (MM) is an approach to anxiety reduction comprised of self-regulation and orientation. Meta-analyses have been conducted on MM with adults and children, but not with college age students who are unique in that they have a distinctive set of stressors. Therefore, we examined the effects of MM on anxiety in college students by conducting a meta-analysis. We searched 11 electronic databases, hand searched select journals, and unpublished literature. We located 25 primary studies, providing 28 comparisons, with 1492 participants. The overall summary effect was .56 (p < .001). Major, level of study, MM practice outside of the intervention, and number of sessions moderated the effects of MM on anxiety. Future researchers should examine the specific needs of subgroups: men vs. women, and graduate vs. undergraduate students. Additionally, researchers should test interventions that fit the needs of today’s college students, by limiting outside practice and offering a minimum of eight instructor-led sessions.
Objective: The primary purpose of this paper was to narratively review the research testing the effects of mindfulness meditation on stress and anxiety in the college students; reviewing the inclusion of mindfulness was a secondary purpose. Methods: A literature search resulted in 57 studies on the effectiveness of mindfulness meditation in reducing stress and anxiety in college students. Conclusions: Researchers examined anxiety in 40 studies, self-reported stress in 34, physiological stress in 11, and mindfulness in 24. Thirty-three of 40 and 25 of 34 studies showed significant decreases in anxiety and stress respectively; 22 of 24 showed an increase in mindfulness. Physiological stress had inconsistent results indicating a need for further research. Overall, mindfulness meditation shows promise in reducing stress and anxiety in college students. Additionally, there are a number of differences in mindfulness interventions including frequency, duration, instructional method, and inclusion of yoga, that need quantitative examination (meta-analysis) to determine which is most effective. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Objective: The primary purpose of this paper was to narratively review the research testing the effects of mindfulness meditation on stress and anxiety in the college students; reviewing the inclusion of mindfulness was a secondary purpose. Methods: A literature search resulted in 57 studies on the effectiveness of mindfulness meditation in reducing stress and anxiety in college students. Conclusions: Researchers examined anxiety in 40 studies, self-reported stress in 34, physiological stress in 11, and mindfulness in 24. Thirty-three of 40 and 25 of 34 studies showed significant decreases in anxiety and stress respectively; 22 of 24 showed an increase in mindfulness. Physiological stress had inconsistent results indicating a need for further research. Overall, mindfulness meditation shows promise in reducing stress and anxiety in college students. Additionally, there are a number of differences in mindfulness interventions including frequency, duration, instructional method, and inclusion of yoga, that need quantitative examination (meta-analysis) to determine which is most effective. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
ObjectiveThe primary purpose of this paper was to narratively review the research testing the effects of mindfulness meditation on stress and anxiety in the college students; reviewing the inclusion of mindfulness was a secondary purpose.
Methods
A literature search resulted in 57 studies on the effectiveness of mindfulness meditation in reducing stress and anxiety in college students.
Conclusions
Researchers examined anxiety in 40 studies, self-reported stress in 34, physiological stress in 11, and mindfulness in 24. Thirty-three of 40 and 25 of 34 studies showed significant decreases in anxiety and stress respectively; 22 of 24 showed an increase in mindfulness. Physiological stress had inconsistent results indicating a need for further research. Overall, mindfulness meditation shows promise in reducing stress and anxiety in college students. Additionally, there are a number of differences in mindfulness interventions including frequency, duration, instructional method, and inclusion of yoga, that need quantitative examination (meta-analysis) to determine which is most effective.
Data were collected to examine autonomic and hemodynamic cardiovascular modulation underlying mindfulness from two independent samples. An initial sample (N = 185) underwent laboratory assessments of central aortic blood pressure and myocardial functioning to investigated the association between mindfulness and cardiac functioning. Controlling for religiosity, mindfulness demonstrated a strong negative relationship with myocardial oxygen consumption and left ventricular work but not heart rate or blood pressure. A second sample (N = 124) underwent a brief (15 min) mindfulness inducing intervention to examine the influence of mindfulness on cardiovascular autonomic modulation via blood pressure variability and heart rate variability. The intervention had a strong positive effect on cardiovascular modulation by decreasing cardiac sympathovagal tone, vasomotor tone, vascular resistance and ventricular workload. This research establishes a link between mindfulness and cardiovascular functioning via correlational and experimental methodologies in samples of mostly female undergraduates. Future directions for research are outlined.