Elsevier

EXPLORE

Volume 14, Issue 6, November 2018, Pages 443-447
EXPLORE

Brief Report
Effect of a Yoga Based Meditation Technique on Emotional Regulation, Self-compassion and Mindfulness in College Students

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.explore.2018.06.008Get rights and content

Highlights

  • Practice of MEMT 45 min a day for 2 weeks improves emotional regulation, positive affect, self compassion and mindfulness and reduces negative affect.

  • All the subjects were actively participated in intervention.

  • No adverse effects were reported throughout the study period.

  • Intervention is feasible, easy, safe and cost-effective.

Background

Emotion regulation is often a challenge for the college students. Yoga practice has been shown to reduce stress and improve mindfulness that is related to emotion regulation. Mastering emotions technique (MEMT) is one of the yoga-based meditation techniques that are designed to control emotions among practitioners. However, to the best of our knowledge, there is no known study reporting its scientific evidence-based effects on emotion and its related variables. Thus, this study was conducted to evaluate the effect of MEMT on emotion regulation, self-compassion, and mindfulness in college students.

Materials and methods

Seventy-two subjects with the age varied from 18 to 25 years were recruited from a residential college. All the subjects underwent MEMT for the duration of 45 min a day for a period of 2 weeks. Assessments such as Emotional Regulation Questionnaire (ERQ), The Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS), Self-Compassion Scale (SCS), and Mindful Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS) were taken before and after the intervention.

Results

Results of this study showed a significant increase in the scores of cognitive reappraisal, positive affect, self-compassion, and MAAS along with a significant reduction in the scores of negative affect, and expressive suppression after the practice of MEMT compared to its respective baseline.

Conclusions

Results of this study suggest that practice of MEMT is effective in improving emotion regulation, positive affects, self-compassion, and mindfulness while in reducing negative affects among college students.

Section snippets

Background

Emotion regulation is defined as “the extrinsic and intrinsic processes that are responsible for monitoring, evaluating, and modifying emotional reactions, especially their intensive and temporal features, to accomplish one's goals.” It is influenced by a range of systems including neurophysiological, physical, cognitive, behavioural, and social systems. Research in the field of emotion regulation among adolescent is steadily increasing over the past decade.1 Reappraisal and suppression are the

Subject

Seventy-two healthy female volunteers with the age varied from 18 to 25 years were recruited from a residential college in Odisha, India, based on the following inclusion and exclusion criteria. Healthy female subjects with the age of 18 years and above, who is willing to participate in the study, were included in the study. Subjects with the history of any systemic and mental illness, under regular medication for any disease, chronic smoking, chronic alcoholism, during menstruation, pregnancy,

Result

Of 100 subjects, 28 subjects did not fulfil the criteria and thus not included in the study. Recruited 72 subjects were undergone 2 weeks of MEMT practice and completed the study. Results of this study showed a significant increase in the cognitive reappraisal of ERQ, positive affect of PANAS, MAAS, and self-compassion scores; and a significant reduction in the expressive suppression of ERQ, and negative affect of PANAS scores after the practice of MEMT compared to its baseline (Fig. 1).

Discussion

The emotional imbalance is quite common and challenging in college students. Evidence suggests that yoga practice improve emotion regulation among school students.1 MEMT is a yoga-based meditation technique developed to regulate the emotions among the regular practitioners. However, there is a lack of scientific evidence reporting the effect of MEMT on emotional regulation in college students. Hence, the present study was conducted to evaluate the effect of MEMT on emotional regulation in

Conclusion

Results of this study suggest that practice of MEMT is effective in improving emotional regulation, positive affects, self-compassion, and mindfulness while in reducing negative affects among college students.

Source of funding

Nil.

References (12)

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