Effects of Controlled Meditation on Stress Response Elicited by a Timed Mathematics Test
File(s)
Date
2019Author
Doucas, Adrianna
Pagel, Jake
Robl, Jordyn
Olander, Natalie
Publisher
Journal of Advanced Student Sciences (JASS)
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
In daily life, human beings encounter a number of different stressors that elicit a physiological
response. Previous studies have demonstrated that mindfulness meditation is effective in
reducing the physiological stress response. The purpose of this study was to determine the ability
of mindfulness meditation to reduce the body's stress response. The stress response was induced
in all participants via a timed multiplication test, enhanced with elements of competition and
monetary incentives. The experimental group underwent a three minute guided meditation prior
to the test, whereas the control group did not, and the stress responses of the two groups were
then compared and analyzed. The study was conducted in three stages. In stage one, baseline
heart rate, respiration rate, and electrodermal activity measurements were recorded for each of
the 46 participants for one minute. In stage two, recording was paused and 23 participants simply
sat for three minutes, while the other 23 participants listened to a three minute guided meditation.
Group assignments were random. In stage three, each participant completed a two-minute timed
multiplication test while competing against a member of the research team. Heart rate,
electrodermal activity, and respiration rate recording resumed during stage three. After testing of
all 46 participants, average changes in heart rate, respiratory rate, and electrodermal activity were
calculated, with the change referring to the difference between baseline measurements and
measurements taken during the first minute of the timed test. Differences in the three variables
were attributed to the effects of mindfulness meditation prior to the test. The average change in
heart rate, measured in beats per minute, was found to have a statistically significant increase in
the meditation group compared to the non-meditation group, suggesting meditation is correlated
with an increased stress response, opposite the hypothesis. Neither electrodermal activity nor
respiratory rate were found to have statistically significant differences when comparing average
changes between the groups.
Subject
Electrodermal Activity
Headspace
Heart Rate
Meditation
Mindfulness
Psychological Stress
Respiration Rate
Stress Response
Timed Test
Permanent Link
http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1793/81998Description
An article that appeared in JASS, issue 2019