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effect of mindfulness meditation intervention on attention, affect, anxiety, mindfulness, and salivary cortisol in school children

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Date Issued:
2011
Summary:
The current study utilized a quasi-experimental nonequivalent groups design to investigate whether a 5-week long Mindfulness Meditation Intervention (MMI), would impact measures of attention, positive and negative affect, state and test anxiety, mindfulness, and reactive cortisol levels in 107 school aged children. A series of reliability corrected ANCOVAs were performed on all behavioral variables. Results indicated that those in the MMI group did not differ from their cohorts on any of the behavioral measures. Reactive levels of salivary cortisol were also collected and assayed in a subsample of 25 participants. An ANCOVA on cortisol change scores was performed and findings did not reach statistical significance. Post-hoc power analyses revealed that this could be due to inadequate sample size. To conclude studies utilizing a MMI of longer duration or with larger sample sizes may be required in assessing the usefulness of MMIs in behavioral and physiological measures in non-clinical child populations.
Title: The effect of mindfulness meditation intervention on attention, affect, anxiety, mindfulness, and salivary cortisol in school children.
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Name(s): Corbett, Maria L.
Charles E. Schmidt College of Science
Department of Psychology
Type of Resource: text
Genre: Electronic Thesis Or Dissertation
Date Issued: 2011
Publisher: Florida Atlantic University
Physical Form: electronic
Extent: x, 76 p. : ill. (some col.)
Language(s): English
Summary: The current study utilized a quasi-experimental nonequivalent groups design to investigate whether a 5-week long Mindfulness Meditation Intervention (MMI), would impact measures of attention, positive and negative affect, state and test anxiety, mindfulness, and reactive cortisol levels in 107 school aged children. A series of reliability corrected ANCOVAs were performed on all behavioral variables. Results indicated that those in the MMI group did not differ from their cohorts on any of the behavioral measures. Reactive levels of salivary cortisol were also collected and assayed in a subsample of 25 participants. An ANCOVA on cortisol change scores was performed and findings did not reach statistical significance. Post-hoc power analyses revealed that this could be due to inadequate sample size. To conclude studies utilizing a MMI of longer duration or with larger sample sizes may be required in assessing the usefulness of MMIs in behavioral and physiological measures in non-clinical child populations.
Identifier: 768833317 (oclc), 3332185 (digitool), FADT3332185 (IID), fau:3769 (fedora)
Note(s): by Maria L. Corbett.
Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2011.
Includes bibliography.
Electronic reproduction. Boca Raton, Fla., 2011. Mode of access: World Wide Web.
Subject(s): Mood (Psychology) -- Physiological aspects
Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy
Meditation -- Therapeutic use
Stress (Psychology)
Stress management
Persistent Link to This Record: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/3332185
Use and Reproduction: http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
Host Institution: FAU