The purpose of this study is to investigate and compare the effects of Christian and Islamic heart-centred spiritual meditation to mindfulness meditation and waitlist control conditions, respectively, in healthy adults. The potential effects will be studied at multiple levels, with a focus on psychophysiology, cognition, mental health, and social functioning.
18 to 60 years old
able to read, speak and understand English
willing to be randomly assigned to all the conditions, with religious affiliation restricting allocation to either the Christian or Islamic type of spiritual meditation conditions
consider oneself to be a Christian or Muslim and pray at least weekly
currently suffer from any mental health conditions or use medication to manage mental health conditions
long-term serious physical medical problems, such as liver, brain, kidney, or other life-threatening chronic diseases
a history of a heart condition, high blood pressure, Raynaud syndrome, diabetes, or musculoskeletal condition
the current use of anxiolytics/mood stabilizers.
Coventry University
Lead sponsor
Donders Centre for Cognitive Neuroimaging
Collaborator
Kuriakose Elias College Mannanam
Collaborator
Little Flower Institute of Social Sciences and Health (LISSAH) College
Collaborator