ERIC Number: EJ982823
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2012-Nov
Pages: 10
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0742-5627
EISSN: N/A
Meditation in Higher Education: Does It Enhance Cognition?
Helber, Casey; Zook, Nancy A.; Immergut, Matthew
Innovative Higher Education, v37 n5 p349-358 Nov 2012
We predicted that students in a sociology course that included contemplative practices (i.e., mindfulness meditation) would show an increase in performance on higher level cognitive abilities (executive functions) over the semester compared to a control group of students. Change in executive functions performance was not significantly different between the two groups. However, when looking within the meditation group, the time spent meditating predicted the amount of executive function improvement, suggesting that the amount of time spent meditating is strongly related to the level of improvement. This finding provides preliminary support for benefits of meditation for students' higher level cognitive abilities.
Descriptors: Cognitive Ability, Sociology, Metacognition, Thinking Skills, Student Improvement, College Instruction, College Students, Executive Function, Control Groups, Experimental Groups, Comparative Analysis, Educational Strategies
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A