Short mindfulness meditation training: does it really reduce perceived stress?

Abstract

To study whether an 8-week mindfulness meditation training program truly reduces perceived stress without designing a stress reduction program. An experimental study was performed in which we studied the effects of 8 weeks of MM training on attention and awareness, as measured by the MAAS (mindfulness attention awareness scale) and perceived stress, as measured by the PSQ (perceived stress questionnaire), in 80 volunteers from the general public recruited by email from university centers. An increase in the individual’s dispositional capacity to be attentive and aware of the experience of the present moment in everyday life was observed in the experimental group versus the control group; F (2, 156) = 14.30, p = .000, η2 partial = .155. Perceived stress showed no significant differences between groups in: social acceptance; F (2, 156) = 2.30, p = .103, overload; F (2, 156) = 2.32, p = .101, irritability, tension and fatigue; F (2, 156) = 2.27, p = .106, energy and joy; F (2, 156) = 2.79, p = .065. MM practice for 8 weeks of training increases the individual’s dispositional capacity to be attentive and aware of the experience of the present moment in everyday life but may not reduce perceived stress.

A mindfulness-based intervention improves perceived stress and mindfulness in university nursing students: a quasi-experimental study

“…Our findings were confirmed as a 8 weeks mindfulness-based intervention was shown to be significantly beneficial to the nursing students. Our findings were similar to Horrillo Álvarez et al 45 , but were not consistent with previous studies 16 , 22 . In Horrillo Álvarez et al 45 study, after 47 voluntary participants aged 20–60 received 8 weeks (total 8 h) of mindfulness training, there was no significant difference in mindfulness between the two groups after 8 weeks.…”

“…Our findings were similar to Horrillo Álvarez et al 45 , but were not consistent with previous studies 16 , 22 . In Horrillo Álvarez et al 45 study, after 47 voluntary participants aged 20–60 received 8 weeks (total 8 h) of mindfulness training, there was no significant difference in mindfulness between the two groups after 8 weeks. However, the immediate effects were found in other two studies 16 , 22 .…”