Positive Health Online

Abstract

PETROVIC and COLLLEAGUES, (1)Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology (ECP), McGill University, Canada. Electronic address: julia.petrovic@mail.mcgill.ca .; (2)Department of Psychology, Concordia University, Canada; (3)Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology (ECP), McGill  University, Canada conducted a meta-analysis; following a systematic review of six databases in November 2023, 23 randomized controlled studies met eligibility criteria and were included in the review.

Background

Loving-kindness meditations involve sending feelings of kindness and care to a series of people including oneself, loved ones, strangers, and all beings. Loving-kindness interventions (LKIs), which include knowledge and/or practice related to loving-kindness, have been gaining attention as a potential intervention for improving mental health in adults.

Methodology

This meta-analysis  synthesized the effects of LKIs on both positive (i.e., mindfulness, compassion, positive affect) and negative (i.e., negative affect, psychological symptoms) indices of mental health across comparison types (i.e., passive control, active  control, alternative treatment) and general sample types (i.e., community, university), and explored characteristics of LKIs that may impact their effectiveness (i.e., intervention format, intervention length, presence/absence of a live facilitator). Following a systematic review of six databases in November 2023, 23 randomized controlled studies met eligibility criteria and were included in the review.

Results

Relative to passive control groups, LKIs had positive effects on mindfulness, compassion, positive affect, negative affect, and psychological symptoms; these effects were non-significant relative to active control groups and alternative therapeutic treatments. Notably, the effects of LKIs did not differ as a function of sample type, intervention format, intervention length, or the presence/absence of a live facilitator.

Conclusion

Findings provide support for the effectiveness of LKIs relative to passive control conditions, as well as their potential comparability to alternative evidence-based therapeutic treatments, and provide insight into resource-effective approaches to the delivery of effective LKIs. However, additional studies are needed to confirm the impacts of LKIs relative to other interventions in the field. Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved. Conflict of interest statement: Declaration of competing interest The authors have no conflicts of interest to disclose.

References

Petrovic J(1), Mettler J(2), Cho S(3), Heath NL(3). The effects of loving-kindness interventions on positive and negative mental health outcomes: A systematic review and meta-analysis.  Clin Psychol Rev.  ;110:102433. doi: 10.1016/j.cpr.2024.102433. Epub Apr 16 2024. Jun 2024.