Two styles of meditation eased depressive symptoms in a four-week trial, possibly through different routes
Not all meditation may work the same way. In a trial of 147 adults, focused-attention and self-inquiry meditation produced similar drops in depressive symptoms, but exploratory analyses pointed to different underlying processes.
A randomized controlled trial investigated the effects of two distinct meditation styles on depressive symptoms in adults without a diagnosed depression. The study, published in Mindfulness, involved 147 participants who were randomly assigned to either focused-attention meditation, self-inquiry meditation, or a wait-list control group.
Both meditation groups showed significant reductions in depressive symptoms and identity threat compared to the control group, with moderate effect sizes. While both forms of meditation increased cognitive decentering, only the focused-attention group experienced a reduction in dysfunctional attitudes. The self-inquiry group showed increases in connectedness to humanity, which was linked to smaller reductions in identity threat and no impact on depressive symptoms.
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