EFFECTS OF THE TRANSCENDENTAL-MEDITATION PROGRAM ON STRESS REDUCTION,HEALTH, AND EMPLOYEE DEVELOPMENT - A PROSPECTIVE-STUDY IN 2 OCCUPATIONAL SETTINGS

Despite the high cost of occupational stress, few studies have empiric ally documented effective methods far alleviating stress and promoting employee development. This three-month prospective study evaluated th e effects of the Transcendental meditation (TM) technique on stress re duction, health and employee development in two settings in the automo tive industry: a large manufacturing plant of a Fortune 100 corporatio n, and a small distribution sales company. Employees who learned TM we re compared to controls similar in worksite, job position, demographic , and pretest characteristics. Regular meditators improved significant ly more than controls (with irregular meditators scoring in between) o n multiple measures of stress and employee development, including: red uced physiological arousal (measured by skin conductance levels) durin g and outside TM practice; decreased trait anxiety, job tension, insom nia and fatigue, cigarette and hard liquor use; improved general healt h (and fewer health complaints); and enhanced employee effectiveness, job satisfaction, and work/personal relationships. Principal component s analysis identified three factors underlying this wide range of impr ovements through TM: ''occupational coherence,'' ''physiological settl edness,'' and ''job and life satisfaction.'' The ''effect size'' of TM in reducing skin conductance, trait anxiety, alcohol/cigarette use, a nd in enhancing personal development (relative to the control conditio n) in these business settings was substantially larger than for other forms of meditation and relaxation reported in four previous statistic al meta-analyses.