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      Vipassana Effects on Interpersonal Functioning : Effects of Vipassana Meditation on Psychological and Interpersonal Functioning: A 1-Month Follow-Up Study

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      research-article
      Author(s):   1 ,
      Publication date (Electronic preprint):
      Journal: ScienceOpen Preprints
      Publisher: ScienceOpen
      Keywords: Vipassana, S.N Goenka, Samadhi, Mindfulness, Meditation, 10-day course, Interpersonal functioning, Interpersonal distress
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            Abstract

            Over the last decade, psychological researchers have begun exploring the effects of Vipassana, a meditation practice based on teachings expounded in the earliest Buddhist texts, dating back more than two-and-a-half millennia (Bodhi, 2005). Courses to learn the technique are widely available, with hundreds of thousands of participants attending residential courses at Vipassana meditation centres around the world every year (Vipassana Research Institute [VRI], 2010).

            An emerging body of evidence indicates that Vipassana meditation is beneficial to psychological health and wellbeing (e.g., Cohen, Jensen, Stange, Neuburger & Heimberg, 2017; Krygier et al., 2013; Szekeres & Wertheim, 2015). However, at present, the effect of Vipassana on interpersonal distress, a critical marker of psychopathology, appears not to have been explored. Furthermore, several prior Vipassana studies have produced findings that were inconsistent with other well-established findings. For example, Adhikari (2012) and Krygier et al. (2013) found that attending a Vipassana course had a non-significant effect on anxiety symptoms. However, there is a substantial body of evidence suggesting that meditation can reduce a range of psychopathological symptoms, including anxiety symptoms (e.g., Cohen et al., 2017; Hofmann, Sawyer, Witt, & Oh, 2010; Keng, Smoski, & Robins, 2011; Sedlmeier et al., 2012; Tomlinson, Yousaf, Vittersø, & Jones, 2018).

            The current study aims to explore the immediate and longer-term effects of attending a 10-day residential Vipassana course on self-reported dispositional mindfulness, symptoms of psychological distress (depression, anxiety and stress), and interpersonal distress, in a non-clinical, community sample. Positive results would support the notion that Vipassana meditation is an effective tool for improving functioning in a number of important domains that are critical to good psychological health (Girard et al., 2017).

            Content

            Author and article information

            Journal
            Title: ScienceOpen Preprints
            Publisher: ScienceOpen
            Publication date (Electronic preprint): 31 January 2024
            Affiliations
            [1 ] Griffith University ( https://ror.org/02sc3r913)
            Author notes
            Author information
            https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3059-6282
            Article
            DOI: 10.14293/PR2199.000686.v1
            SO-VID: cf063b80-29ae-4086-bd08-a3c27065aa1c
            License:

            This work has been published open access under Creative Commons Attribution License CC BY 4.0 , which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Conditions, terms of use and publishing policy can be found at www.scienceopen.com .

            History
            Date received : 31 January 2024
            Categories

            Data availability: The datasets generated during and/or analysed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.
            ScienceOpen disciplines: Philosophy of religion,Psychology,Practical theology,Applied ethics
            Keywords: Vipassana,S.N Goenka,Samadhi,Mindfulness,Meditation,10-day course,Interpersonal functioning,Interpersonal distress

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