Scientific Research Database
Research on the Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi Programs
As taught by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi
649 papers · 1,712 findings · 181 journals · 1970–2019
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Read more →649 papers found
- 2019· Psychological Reports· EmpiricalBandy, Carole L.; Dillbeck, Michael C.; Sezibera, Vincent; Taljaard, Lian; Wilks, Mirah; Shapiro, David; de Reuck, Jody; Peycke, Richard (2019). Reduction of PTSD in South African University Students Using Transcendental Meditation Practice. Psychological Reports, advance publication, 1–16.
Nonrandomized comparison of 34 TM students and 34 comparison students at different South African universities reported decreases in PTSD symptoms and depression in the TM group.
- Psychological Health: PTSD symptoms and depression decreased relative to comparison students; outcomes were associated with regularity of TM practice.
- 2018· Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology· Research ReviewJayatunge, Ruwan M.; Pokorski, Mieczyslaw (2018). Post-traumatic Stress Disorder: A Review of Therapeutic Role of Meditation Interventions. Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology, Neuroscience and Respiration. doi:10.1007/5584_2018_167.
General narrative review of meditation interventions for PTSD, including TM alongside other approaches. It discusses possible symptom and quality-of-life benefits while emphasizing limited and heterogeneous evidence; not a new TM trial.
- Review Paper—Psychology: Reviews meditation approaches, including TM, as potential interventions for PTSD; reports suggest symptom reduction, but small samples and varied methods limit firm conclusions.
- 2018· Journal of Maharishi Vedic Research Institute· EmpiricalCavanaugh, Kenneth L.; Gelderloos, Paul; Dillbeck, Michael C. (2018). Group practice of the Transcendental Meditation-Sidhi program and improved U.S.-Soviet relations. Journal of Maharishi Vedic Research Institute, 8, 125–164.
Time-series analysis of 1979–1986 Soviet behavior toward the United States reported increased cooperation and reduced conflict associated with four World Peace Assemblies involving large TM-Sidhi groups.
- Sociological—Reduced Violent Conflict: Four World Peace Assemblies were associated with more cooperative and less conflictual Soviet behavior toward the United States in monthly event data.
- 2018· The Permanente Journal· EmpiricalValosek, Laurent; Link, Janice; Mills, Paul; Konrad, Arthur; Rainforth, Maxwell; Nidich, Sanford (2018). Effect of Meditation on Emotional Intelligence and Perceived Stress in the Workplace: A Randomized Controlled Study. The Permanente Journal, 22, 17-172.
Four-month randomized study in 96 school-district central-office employees, from the same trial population as the Travis psychological-distress paper, reported increased emotional intelligence and reduced perceived stress with TM versus wait-list controls.
- Self Development: Higher total emotional-intelligence scores; the interpersonal scale did not show a significant increase.
- Psychological Health: Lower perceived stress compared with wait-list controls.
- 2018· Brain and Cognition· EmpiricalTravis, Fred; Valosek, Laurent; Konrad IV, Arthur; Link, Janice; Salerno, John; Scheller, Ray; Nidich, Sanford (2018). Effect of meditation on psychological distress and brain functioning: A randomized controlled study. Brain and Cognition, 125, 100–105.
Randomized four-month trial in 96 San Francisco school-district administrators and staff compared TM with wait-list controls. Mood disturbance decreased; Brain Integration Scale scores increased in the EEG subgroup (79 participants).
- Psychological Health: Reduced total mood disturbance, anxiety, anger, depression, fatigue and confusion, with increased vigor relative to controls.
- Electroencephalographic: Increased EEG-derived Brain Integration Scale scores in the tested subgroup.
- 2018· Journal of Maharishi Vedic Research Institute· Research ReviewOrme-Johnson, David W.; Fergusson, Lee (2018). Global impact of the Maharishi Effect from 1974 to 2017: Theory and research. Journal of Maharishi Vedic Research Institute, 8, 13–79.
Review of 43 years of Maharishi-effect theory and research, covering 1974–2017; not a new intervention trial.
- Review Paper—Society: Reviews studies reporting associations between TM/TM-Sidhi group practice and reduced societal conflict and improved quality of life.
- 2018· Brain and Cognition· EmpiricalMahone, Michelle C.; Travis, Fred; Gevirtz, Richard; Hubbard, David (2018). fMRI during Transcendental Meditation practice. Brain and Cognition, 123, 30–33.
Within-subject fMRI study of 16 long-term TM practitioners reported increased blood flow in executive/attention areas and decreased blood flow in arousal-related areas during TM.
- During the Practice—Brain Activity: During TM, blood flow was higher in anterior cingulate and dorsolateral prefrontal cortices and lower in the pons and cerebellum.
- 2018· Health Care for Women International· EmpiricalGoldstein, Leslee; Nidich, Sanford I.; Goodman, Rachel; Goodman, David (2018). The effect of transcendental meditation on self-efficacy, perceived stress, and quality of life in mothers in Uganda. Health Care for Women International. doi:10.1080/07399332.2018.1445254.
A three-month controlled study of 81 mothers living in poverty in Uganda (42 TM, 39 wait-list controls) reported improved self-efficacy, lower perceived stress, and better mental and physical quality of life in the TM group.
- Self Development: Greater improvement in general self-efficacy than in wait-list controls.
- Quality of Life: Lower perceived stress and improved mental and physical quality of life relative to controls.
- 2018· The Lancet Psychiatry· Research ReviewBarnes, Vernon Anthony (2018). Transcendental Meditation and treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder. The Lancet Psychiatry, published online November 15.
Editorial comment discussing a PTSD trial and the potential place of TM in military healthcare; not a new clinical study.
- Psychological Health: Discusses TM as a portable, self-administered approach that may complement standard PTSD care.
- Psychological Health: Highlights practical acceptance and adherence in military settings while calling for further comparative and implementation research.
- 2017· Journal of Health and Environmental Research· TheoreticalFergusson, Lee; Wells, Geoffrey; Kettle, David (2017). Principles and Practice of Sustainability in Maharishi Vedic Science. Journal of Health and Environmental Research, 3(3-1), 1–15.
Theoretical review of Vedic approaches to sustainability, agriculture, architecture and living in harmony with nature; not a new empirical trial.
- Theoretical papers—Maharishi Vedic Science: Presents principles of harmony with nature and the proposed relevance of Vedic knowledge to sustainability.
- Theoretical papers—Maharishi Vedic Science: Discusses applications including Vedic organic agriculture and Vāstu architecture as potential contributions to a sustainable future.
- 2017· International Journal of Society, Culture & Language· TheoreticalFergusson, Lee; Kettle, David; Wells, Geoffrey (2017). Indigenous Accounts of Environmental Stewardship in Light of the Theory and Language of Maharishi Vedic Science. International Journal of Society, Culture & Language, 5(1).
Theoretical comparison of Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islander and Māori environmental stewardship with the Vedic tradition. No new TM intervention is tested.
- Theoretical papers—Maharishi Vedic Science: Surveys Indigenous traditions of sustainable and ethical living and compares them with Vedic approaches to environmental stewardship.
- Theoretical papers—Maharishi Vedic Science: Explores natural law, tradition, language and knowledge as conceptual foundations for sustainability.
- 2017· Environment, Development and Sustainability· TheoreticalFergusson, Lee; Wells, Geoffrey; Kettle, David (2017). The personal, social and environmental sustainability of Jainism in light of Maharishi Vedic Science. Environment, Development and Sustainability, online publication.
Comparative theoretical essay on sustainability principles in Jainism and Maharishi Vedic Science. Uses existing literature, not a new intervention study.
- Theoretical papers—Maharishi Vedic Science: Relates Jain ecological ethics, nonviolence and conservation to Vedic accounts of unity between human life and nature.
- Theoretical papers—Maharishi Vedic Science: Proposes that these traditions may contribute to personal, social and environmental sustainability.
- 2017· International Journal of Current Research· Research ReviewFergusson, Lee (2017). An annotated historical survey of 84 publications by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi from 1957–2015. International Journal of Current Research, 9(2), 47009–47054.
Annotated historical catalog of 84 documents by Maharishi, with an index and bibliography of 419 related third-party publications; a resource for scholarship rather than an empirical TM trial.
- Theoretical Paper—Consciousness: Organizes Maharishi’s published writings from 1957–2015 by themes and terms to support systematic study of Maharishi Vedic Science.
- Theoretical Paper—Consciousness: Connects the catalog with related publications across multiple academic fields.
- 2017· Consciousness and Cognition· EmpiricalTravis, Frederick; Parim, Niyazi; Shrivastava, Amrita (2017). Higher theta and alpha1 coherence when listening to Vedic recitation compared to coherence during Transcendental Meditation practice. Consciousness and Cognition, 49, 157–162.
Within-person comparison of subjective experiences and EEG in 37 subjects listening to live Vedic recitation and practicing TM.
- During the Practice—Electroencephalographic: Vedic recitation produced higher theta2 and alpha1 coherence in frontal, parietal and frontal-parietal measurements than TM in this comparison.
- During the Practice—Electroencephalographic: Participants described recitation as a deeper, more inward experience; the study measured immediate experience and EEG, not clinical benefit.
- 2017· Brain and Cognition· EmpiricalTravis, Frederick; Parim, Niyazi (2017). Default mode network activation and Transcendental Meditation practice: Focused Attention or Automatic Self-transcending?. Brain and Cognition, 111, 86–94.
EEG source analysis and subjective reports from 87 practitioners with one month to five years of TM experience, comparing TM, eyes-closed rest and a task.
- During the Practice—Electroencephalographic: Rest and TM showed theta/alpha activation in default-mode-network regions, while the task activated central-executive-network regions.
- During the Practice—Electroencephalographic: Reported transcending did not increase with years of practice; the authors argue against classifying TM as focused-attention meditation.
- 2017· Complementary Therapies in Medicine· Research ReviewOoi, Soo Liang; Giovino, Melisa; Pak, Sok Cheon (2017). Transcendental meditation for lowering blood pressure: An overview of systematic reviews and meta-analyses. Complementary Therapies in Medicine, 34, 26–34.
Overview of eight systematic reviews and meta-analyses of randomized trials, assessing blood-pressure outcomes and review quality.
- Health—Cardiovascular: The review described average reductions of approximately 4 mm Hg systolic and 2 mm Hg diastolic blood pressure, comparable to some lifestyle measures.
- Health—Cardiovascular: Evidence generally strengthened over time, but findings differed between reviews and many trials had potential bias; average review quality was fair.
- 2017· The Permanente Journal· EmpiricalNidich, Sanford; Seng, Angela; Compton, Blaze; O’Connor, Tom; Salerno, John W.; Nidich, Randi (2017). Transcendental Meditation and Reduced Trauma Symptoms in Female Inmates: A Randomized Controlled Study. The Permanente Journal, 21, 16-008.
Pilot randomized trial of 22 female inmates assigned to TM or a wait-list control; 20 completed four-month posttesting. This is distinct from the earlier study of male inmates.
- Psychological Health: TM participants showed greater reductions in total trauma symptoms, intrusive thoughts and hyperarousal than wait-list controls after four months.
- Psychological Health: Reported effect sizes ranged from 0.65 to 0.99; 81% of TM participants complied with practice. Larger trials are needed.
- 2017· Journal of Health and Environmental Research· EmpiricalHatchard, Guy; Cavanaugh, Kenneth (2017). The Effect of Coherent Collective Consciousness on National Quality of Life and Economic Performance Indicators—An Analysis of the IMD Index of National Competitive Advantage. Journal of Health and Environmental Research, 3(3-1), 16–31.
Cross-country panel analysis of New Zealand and Norway compared with 44 developed nations after predicted TM/TM-Sidhi population thresholds in 1993. Observational national-level associations do not establish individual treatment effects.
- Quality of Life: New Zealand and Norway showed increased national competitive-advantage scores after reaching the predicted practice thresholds, relative to comparison nations.
- Quality of Life: Subsidiary analyses reported broad-based, sustained gains alongside economic growth, low unemployment and low inflation.
- 2017· Cognitive Processing· EmpiricalFaber, Pascal L.; Travis, Frederick; Milz, Patricia; Parim, Niyazi (2017). EEG Microstates During Different Phases of Transcendental Meditation Practice. Cognitive Processing, 18(3), 307–314.
Within-person EEG comparison of 20 TM practitioners during transcending, undirected mentation during TM, and task-free eyes-closed rest. Examines microstate duration, coverage, and occurrence; it does not test clinical outcomes.
- During the Practice—Electroencephalographic: Transcending and resting showed lower Class A and higher Class D microstate coverage and occurrence than undirected mentation.
- During the Practice—Electroencephalographic: Transcending showed lower Class C coverage and occurrence than undirected mentation.
- During the Practice—Electroencephalographic: Transcending did not significantly differ from task-free resting in the measured microstate parameters; Class B parameters did not differ across conditions.
- 2017· The Permanente Journal· Research ReviewElder, Charles R. (2017). Mind-Body Training for At-Risk Populations: Preventive Medicine at its Best. The Permanente Journal, 21, article 16-174.
Editorial discussing TM as an accessible preventive-health intervention for incarcerated and other at-risk populations. It comments on two separate prison trials, including the male-inmate trial already cataloged as paper 619, rather than reporting a new study.
- Review Paper—Rehabilitation: Discusses reported improvements in trauma symptoms in trials of 180 male inmates and 22 female inmates; these are findings of the cited trials, not Elder's own sample.
- Review Paper—Health: Argues for providing in-person mind-body instruction within settings accessible to at-risk populations; this is a clinical perspective, not a tested cost-effectiveness finding.