Meditation and Emotional Intelligence

Maharishi International University

Status: Completed

Conditions: Perceived Stress; Job Stress

Treatments: Behavioral: Transcendental meditation

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT03097510

DLF-WEHF-1440

Details and patient eligibility

About

This randomized controlled trial evaluated the impact of the Transcendental Meditation program on emotional intelligence and perceived stress in supervisors and administrative staff in a public school system

Full description

The objective of this study was to determine whether a mind-body technique, known as the practice of Transcendental Meditation® (TM), could significantly increase emotional intelligence and decrease perceived stress in supervisors and administrative staff in a public school system. For this purpose, 96 participants from the administrative offices of the San Francisco Unified School District were randomly assigned to either immediate start of the TM program or to a delayed start wait-list control group. Subjects learning TM were instructed to meditate for 20 minutes twice a day for the four month duration of the project. All subjects were administered the BarOn Emotional Quotient Inventory (EQ-i) and Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) at baseline and posttest. If successful, these findings would suggest that TM could be used as a professional development program in organizations to increase emotional intelligence and decrease perceived stress, in turn enhancing leadership capacity and organizational effectiveness.

Enrollment: 96 patients

Sex: All

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• 18 years or older,
• an employee of the San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD),
• attendance at an informational meeting on the TM program,
• willingness to be randomly assigned to either active treatment or the control group.

Exclusion criteria

• having already learned the TM program,
• not being available to attend treatment or testing sessions.

Trial design

Primary purpose: Treatment

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Double Blind

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96 participants in 2 patient groups

Transcendental Meditation

Experimental group

Description:

The TM technique is a simple, natural, effortless technique that allows the mind to experience finer levels of the thinking process until the mind transcends and experiences the source of thought, a state of deep, integrated relaxation. During the meditation session, the active mind settles down to a silent yet fully awake state of awareness. TM was taught to study participants by certified instructors, using standardized procedures for teaching.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Transcendental meditation

Wait list control

No Intervention group

Description:

This wait list group served as the control group. After the study was completed, the wait-list controls were given the option to learn the TM technique as their reward for participating as controls during the 4 month study.