An Evaluation of Meditation as a Stress Reduction Technique for Persons with Spinal Cord Injury (Rehabilitation, Counseling, Therapy Strategies).

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to evaluate meditation as a stress reduction technique for persons with spinal cord injury using a Pre-test/Post-test Control Group Design. Subjects were males (n = 10) and females (n =10) with spinal cord injury between the ages of 20 and 50 who were r and omly assigned to an Experimental group (n = 10) and Control group (n = 10). Treatment was subsequently provided to the Control group to measure the "conversion effect." Treatment groups meditated using Siddha Yoga Meditation, the independent variable. The Control group (without treatment) was requested to relax with eyes open. The pre-test and post-test sections of the Anthony Questionnaire were ratings of stress-related events based on degrees of discomfort. Initial anxiety levels (pre-test only) were also measured using the Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI). Data were analyzed using analysis of covariance and paired t-tests. Results indicated that there were: (1) no significant difference between the mean post-test stress scores of the Control and Experimental groups; (2) significant difference between the mean pre-test and post-test stress scores of the Experimental group; (3) no significant difference between the mean pre-test and first post-test stress scores (without treatments) of the Control group; (4) significant difference between the mean pre-test (without treatment) and second post-test (with treatment) stress scores of the Control group; and (5) significant difference between the first mean post-test (without treatment) stress score and the second mean post-test (with treatment) stress score of the Control group. Based on the data, it was concluded that meditation is effective in reducing stress and tension levels for this sample of spinal cord injured persons.