Throughout growing literature, contemplative practices have been identified as effective approaches to promote wellness in adolescence and young adulthood, with calls to incorporate contemplative approaches in the school setting. One type of contemplative practice called loving-kindness meditation (LKM) offers practitioners with a method for extending compassion toward self and others, and shows promise for strengthening individuals’ wellbeing. Yet, despite its indicated benefits, studies of LKM with youth are minimal, and studies of LKM interventions in the school setting are scarce. The goal of this study was to examine students’ inner resources and protective factors prior to and following a school-based intervention of a daily LKM practice. I employed a nonequivalent control group quasi-experimental design and measured students’ levels of resilience, hope, inner peace, and emotional intelligence. I conducted a repeated measures multivariate analysis of variance to determine differences between groups and across time. Findings indicated that there was not a statistically significant difference between treatment and control groups in students’ reported levels of resilience, hope, inner peace, and emotional intelligence. Yet, when students’ frequency of practice was included in the model, the results showed that the between-subjects effects for frequency of practice was significant. The results suggest potential influence between the intervention and students’ reported outcomes; however, the findings should be interpreted with caution due to limitations of the study, and further examination is warranted. Following interpretation of the results, I provide a discussion of the limitations, implications for school-based interventions, and suggestions for future research.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:wm.edu/oai:scholarworks.wm.edu:etd-7409 |
| Date | 01 January 2023 |
| Creators | Niles, Jennifer K. |
| Publisher | W&M ScholarWorks |
| Source Sets | William and Mary |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects |
| Rights | © The Author, http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ |
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