Is Spirituality a Critical Ingredient of Meditation? Comparing the Effects of Spiritual Meditation, Secular Meditation, and Relaxation on Spiritual, Psychological, Cardiac, and Pain Outcomes
Abstract
This study compared secular and spiritual forms of meditation to assess the benefits of a spiritual intervention. Participants were taught a meditation or relaxation technique to practice for 20 min a day for two weeks. After two weeks, participants returned to the lab, practiced their technique for 20 min, and placed their hand in a cold-water bath of 2 degrees C for as long as they could endure it. The length of time that individuals kept their hand in the water bath was measured. Pain, anxiety, mood, and the spiritual health were assessed following the two-week intervention. Significant interactions occurred (time x group); the Spiritual Meditation group had greater decreases in anxiety and more positive mood, spiritual health, and spiritual experiences than the other two groups. They also tolerated pain almost twice as long as the other two groups.
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Of the 18 best studies, nine (50%) reported inverse relationships (less pain among the more R/S or reduced pain in response to an R/S intervention).
“Of the 18 best studies, nine (50%) reported inverse relationships (less pain among the more R/S [534] or reduced pain in response to a R/S intervention [535–542]), while three (20%) reported positive relationships (worse pain in the more R/S) [543–545].”
From Religion, Spirituality, and Health: The Research and Clinical Implications (2012) · cites this paper as [537]
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References 54 · Cited by 350
- Authors
- Wachholtz, A. B., & Pargament, K. I.
- Affiliations
- Bowling Green State University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Wachholtz, Amy B.
- ORCID
- Wachholtz, Amy B.
- Venue
- Journal of Behavioral Medicine
- Published
- 2005-07-28
- Volume
- 28
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 369-384
- ISSN
- 0160-7715 (ISSN-L)
- 1573-3521
- OpenAlex
- W2081357547
- Cited by
- 350
- References
- 54
- Citations by year
- 2026: 12 · 2025: 9 · 2024: 12 · 2023: 53 · 2022: 12 · 2021: 16 · 2020: 25 · 2019: 16 · 2018: 19 · 2017: 9 · 2016: 16 · 2015: 21 · 2014: 18 · 2013: 14 · 2012: 22
- FWCI
- 13.22
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Licence
- www.springer.com/tdm (tdm)
- Locations
- Journal of Behavioral Medicine (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Network (American Medical Association) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (R24HD050959)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Mindfulness and Compassion Interventions
- Social Sciences › Health › Religion, Spirituality, and Psychology
- Social Sciences › Demography › Workplace Spirituality and Leadership
- Keywords
- spiritual meditation, relaxation techniques, spiritual health, pain tolerance, cold pressor test, anxiety, mood, spiritual experience, cardiac outcomes
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Affect, Anxiety, Depression, Female, Heart Rate, Humans, Male, Muscle Relaxation, Mysticism, Pain, Surveys and Questionnaires, Religion, Pain Threshold, Meditation, Spirituality, Secularism
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