Randomised Controls Trials (RCTs)

Randomized Controlled Trials on Transcendental Meditation

  1. Akila S, Effect of transcendental meditation on occupational stress of private school teachers. International Journal of Adapted Physical Education & Yoga 2016 1(1):22-30
  2. Alexander CN, Langer EJ, Newman RI, Chandler HM, Davies JL. Transcendental Meditation, mindfulness, and longevity: an experimental study with the elderly. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 1989 57(6):950-964
  3. Alexander CN, Schneider RH, Staggers F, Sheppard W, Clayborne BM, Rainforth MV, Salerno J, Kondwani K, Smith S, Walton K, Egan B. Trial of stress reduction for hypertension in older African Americans: II. Sex and risk subgroup analysis. Hypertension 1996 28(2):228-237
  4. Allen, C.P Effect of TM, EMG, Biofeedback relaxation, muscle tension and stuttering a Quantitative Comparison. Vol 4 Collected Papers paper 298, 2287-2289.
  5. Ballou D. The Transcendental Meditation program at Stillwater Prison. In DWOrme-Johnson, JT Farrow (eds),Scientific Research on Maharishi’s Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi programme: Collected Papers, Volume 1 (pp.713-718). Rheinweiler, West Germany: MERU Press, 1977
  6. Barnes VA, Kapuku GK, Treiber FA. Impact of Transcendental Meditation on Left VentricularMass in African American Adolescents. Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine. Volume 2012 Article ID 923153, doi:10.1155/2012/923153
  7. Barnes VA, Schneider RH, Alexander CN, Rainforth M, Staggers F, Salerno, J. Impact of Transcendental Meditation on mortality in older African Americans with hypertension—eight-year follow-up. Journal of Social Behavior and Personality 2005 17(1):201-216
  8. Barnes VA, Treiber FA, Davis H. Impact of Transcendental Meditation on cardiovascular function at rest and during acute stress in adolescents with high normal blood pressure. Journal of Psychosomatic Research 2001 51(4):597-605
  9. Barnes VA, Treiber FA, Johnson MH. Impact of stress reduction on ambulatory blood pressure in African American adolescents. American Journal of Hypertension 2004 17(4):366-369
  10. Barnes VA, Bauza LB, Treiber FA. Impact of stress reduction on negative school behavior in adolescents. Health and Quality of Life Outcomes 2003 1(1):10
  11. Bellehsen M, Stoycheva V, Cohen BH, Nidich S. A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial of Transcendental Meditation as Treatment for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in Veterans. J Trauma Stress. 2022 Feb;35(1):22-31
  12. Benn, R. Transcendental Meditation (TM) and emotional functioning in fifth grade students. Focus on Alternative and Complementary Therapies 8: 480–481, 2003.
  13. Bleasdale, J. E., Peterson, M. C., & Nidich, S. (2019). Effect of Meditation on Social/Emotional Well-Being in a High-Performing High School. Professional School Counseling, 23(1).
  14. Bonamer JI, Kutash M, Hartranft SR, Aquino-Russell C, Bugajski A, Johnson A. Clinical Nurse Well-being Improved Through Transcendental Meditation: A Multimethod Randomized Controlled Trial. J Nurs Adm. 2024 Jan 1;54(1):16-24.
  15. Brautigam E. Effects of the Using the Transcendental Meditation pro­gram on drug abusers: a prospective study. In DW Orme-Johnson, JT Farrow. Scientific Research on Maharishi’s Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi programme: Collected Papers, Volume 1 (pp.506-514). Rheinweiler, West Germany: MERU Press, 1977
  16. Brooks JS, Scarano T. Transcendental Meditation in the treatment of post-Vietnam adjustment. Journal of Counseling and Development 1985 64:212-215
  17. Broome JR, Orme-Johnson D, Schmidt-Wilk J. Worksite stress reduction through the Transcendental Meditation program. Journal of Social Behavior and Personality 2005 17(1):235-276
  18. Castillo-Richmond A, Schneider RH, Alexander CN, Cook R, Myers H, Nidich S, Haney C, Rainforth M, Salerno J. Effects of stress reduction on carotid atherosclerosis in hypertensive African Americans. Stroke 2000 31(3):568-573
  19. Chhatre, Sumedha; Metzger, David S.; Frank, Ian; Boyer, Jean; Thompson, Edward; Nidich, Sanford; Montaner, Luis J.; and Jayadevappa, Ravishankar. Effects of behavioural stress reduction Transcendental Meditation intervention in persons with HIV. AIDS Care: Psychological and Socio-medical Aspects of AIDS/HIV DOI:10.1080/09540121.2013.764396, 2013.
  20. Curtin, T. G. The relationship between Transcendental Meditation and adaptive regression. Doctoral thesis (summary), School of Education, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts, USA, 1973. Findings also published in Dissertation Abstracts International 34(4): 1696A, 1973.
  21. Dick LD, Ragland RE. A study of the Transcendental Meditation program in the service of counseling. In DW Orme-Johnson, JT Farrow (eds), Scientific Research on Maharishi’s Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi programme: Collected Papers, Volume 1 (pp.600-604). Rheinweiler, West Germany: MERU Press, 1977
  22. Dillbeck MC. The effect of the Transcendental Meditation technique on anxiety level. Journal of Clinical Psychology 1977 33(4):1076–1078
  23. Dillbeck, M. C.; and Bronson, E. C. Short-term longitudinal effects of the Transcendental Meditation technique on EEG power and coherence. International Journal of Neuroscience 14: 147–151, 1981.
  24. Dillbeck MC. Meditation and flexibility of visual perception and verbal problem solving. Memory and Cognition 1982 10(3): 207-215
  25. Dixit, R., Srivastava, T.R., Dixit, M. (2017). An evaluation of the effect of Pranayamas and Transcendental meditation on high blood pressure subjects: A non-blinded randomized controlled trial. Indian Journal of Clinical Anatomy and Physiology, 4(2):254–258.
  26. Droscher, H., Van Den Hout, B., Hughes, L., Evans, H., Banerjee, R., & Hayward, M. (2021). Quiet time via transcendental meditation in secondary school pupils with special educational needs: effects on well-being and behaviour. Pastoral Care in Education, 40(2), 181–196
  27. Elder C, Aickin M, Bauer V, Cairns J, Vuckovic N. Randomized trial of a whole-system Ayurvedic protocol for type 2 diabetes. Alternative Therapies 2006 12(5):24-30
  28. Elder, C., Nidich, S., Colbert, R. et al. Reduced psychological distress in racial and ethnic minority    students practicing the transcendental meditation program. Journal of Instructional Psychology, 2011 38(2), 109–116
  29. Elder C, Nidich S, Moriarty F, Nidich R. Effect of transcendental meditation on employee stress, depression, and burnout: a randomized controlled study. Perm J. 2014 Winter;18(1):19-23.
  30. Ferguson, P. C.; and Gowan, J. C. Psychological findings on Transcendental Meditation. Findings also published in Journal of Humanistic Psychology 16(3): 51–60, 1976.
  31. Fields JZ, Walton KW, Schneider RH, Nidich SI, Pomerantz R, Suchdev P, Castillo-Richmond A, Payne K, Clark ET, Rainforth M. Effect of a multimodality natural medicine program on carotid atherosclerosis in older subjects: a pilot trial of Maharishi Vedic Medicine. American Journal of Cardiology 2002 89(8):952-958
  32. Friend, K. E & Maliszewski, M. More on the Reliability of the Kinesthetic aFter-effects Measure and need for Stimulation.. Journal of Personality Assessment 1978 42(4) 385-391.
  33. Gaylord C, Orme-Johnson D, Travis F. The effects of the Transcendental Meditation technique and progressive muscular relaxation on EEG coherence, stress reactivity, and mental health in black adults. International Journal of Neuroscience 1989 46(1/2):77-86
  34. Gaylord, C.; Orme-Johnson, D. W.; Willbanks, M.; Travis, F.; Rainforth, M.; and Reynolds, B. The effects of the Transcendental Meditation Program on self-concept and EEG coherence in black college students. Findings presented at the annual meeting of the Iowa Academy of Science, Storm Lake, Iowa, USA, April 1989. Findings also published in abstract insert in The Journal of the Iowa Academy of Science 96(1), A31–A32, 1989.
  35. Gore S, Abrams A, Ellis G. The effect of statewide implementation of the Maharishi Technology of the Unified Field in the Vermont Department of Corrections. In RA Chalmers, G Clements, H Schenkluhn, M Weinless (eds), Scientific Research on Maharishi’s Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi programme: Collected Papers, Volume 4(pp.2453-2464). Vlodrop, Netherlands: MERU Press, 1989
  36. Haaga, David A.F.; Grosswald, Sarina; Gaylord-King, Carolyn; Rainforth, Maxwell; Tanner, Melissa; Travis, Fred; and Schneider, Robert H. Effects of the Transcendental Meditation program on substance use among university students. Cardiology Research and Practice, Article ID 537101, 8 pages, 2011. Doi:10.4061/2011/537101.
  37. Harding, S. D. The effects of Transcendental Meditation on an auditory temporal discrimination task. Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Sussex, Brighton, Sussex, England, 1981.
  38. Herzberger HG. Voice quality and Maharishi’s Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi program: vocal acoustics in health and higher states of awareness. PhD dissertation, Maharishi University of Management, Fairfield, Iowa. Retrieved from http://www.mum.edu/dissertations/herzberger.html. Dissertation Abstracts International 1992 53, no. 06B:3190 (Order No. 9228950)
  39. Jackson Y. Learning disorders and the Transcendental Meditation pro­gram: retrospects and prospects. In RA Chalmers, G Clements, H Schenkluhn, M Weinless (eds), Scientific Research on Maharishi’s Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi programme: Collected Papers, Volume 2 (pp.1000-1011). Vlodrop, Netherlands: MERU Press, 1989.
  40. Jayadevappa R, Johnson JC, Bloom BS, Nidich S, Desai S, Chhatre S, Razian D, Schneider RH. Effectiveness of Transcendental Meditation on functional capacity and quality of life of African Americans with congestive heart failure: a randomized control study. Ethnicity and Disease 2007 17:72-77.
  41. Joshi SP, Wong AI, Brucker A, et al. Efficacy of Transcendental Meditation to Reduce Stress Among Health Care Workers: A Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Netw Open.2022;5(9):e2231917.
  42. Kember P. The Transcendental Meditation technique and postgraduate academic performance. British Journal of Educational Psychology 1985 55:164-166
  43. Klimes-Dougan B, Chong LS, Samikoglu A, Thai M, Amatya P, Cullen KR, Lim KO. Transcendental meditation and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis functioning: a pilot, randomized controlled trial with young adults. Stress. 2020 Jan;23(1):105-115.
  44. Kniffki C. Tranzendentale Meditation und Autogenes Training- Ein Vergleich (Transcendental Meditation and Autogenic Training: A Comparison). Munich: Kindler Verlag, 1979
  45. Kondwani KA, Schneider RH, Alexander CN, Sledge C, Staggers F, Clayborne BM, Sheppard W, Rainforth M, Krouse L, Orme-Johnson DW. Left ventricular mass regression with the Transcendental Meditation technique and a health education program in hypertensive African Americans. Journal of Social Behavior and Personality 2005 17:181-200
  46. Leach MJ, Francis A, Ziaian T. Transcendental Meditation for the improvement of health and wellbeing in community-dwelling dementia caregivers [TRANSCENDENT]: a randomised wait-list controlled trial. BMC Complement Altern Med. 2015 May 8;15:145.
  47. Leach, M. Lorenzon, H. Transcendental Meditation for Women Affected by Domestic Violence: A Pilot Randomised, Controlled Trial. Journal of Family Violence 19/4/23 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10896-023-00561-3
  48. Loiselle M, Brown C, Travis F, Gruener G, Rainforth M, Nidich S. Effects of Transcendental Meditation on Academic Physician Burnout and Depression: A Mixed Methods Randomized Controlled Trial. J Contin Educ Health Prof. 2023 Summer 01;43(3):164-171.
  49. MacLean CR, Walton KG, Wenneberg SR, Levitsky DK, Mandarino JV, Waziri R, Hillis SL, Schneider RH. Effects of the Transcendental Meditation program on adaptive mechanisms: changes in hormone levels and responses to stress after four months of practice. Psychoneuroendocrinology 1997 22(4):277-295
  50. Miskiman DE. The effect of the TM program on the organization of thinking and recall (secondary organization). In DW Orme-Johnson, JT Farrow (eds), Scientific Research on Maharishi’s Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi programme: Collected Papers, Volume 1 (385-392). Rheinweiler, West Germany: MERU Press, 1977
  51. Miskiman DE. Performance on a learning task by subjects who practice the Transcendental Meditation technique. In DW Orme-Johnson, JT Farrow (eds), Scientific Research on Maharishi’s Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi programme: Collected Papers, Volume 1 (382-384). Rheinweiler, West Germany: MERU Press, 1977
  52. Nidich SI, Fields JZ, Rainforth MV, Pomerantz R, Cella D, Kristeller J, Salerno JW, Schneider RH. A randomized controlled trial of the effects of Transcendental Meditation on quality of life in older breast cancer patients. Integrative Cancer Therapies 2009 8(3):228-234
  53. Nidich S, Rainforth M, Haaga D, Hagelin J, Salerno J, Travis F, Tanner M, Gaylord-King C, Grosswald S, Schneider R. A randomized controlled trial on effects of the Transcendental Meditation program on blood pressure, psychological distress, and coping in young adults. American Journal of Hypertension 2009 22(12):1326-1331
  54. Nidich SI et al. Reduced symptoms of depression in older minority subjects at risk for cardiovascular disease: randomized controlled mind-body intervention trials [Study on African Americans]. Paper presented at 31st Annual Meeting of the Society of Behavioral Medicine, 9 April 2010, Seattle, Washington, USA.
  55. Nidich SI et al. Reduced symptoms of depression in older minority subjects at risk for cardiovascular disease: randomized controlled mind-body intervention trials [Study on Native Hawaiians]. Paper presented at 31st Annual Meeting of the Society of Behavioral Medicine, 9 April 2010, Seattle, Washington, USA.
  56. Nidich S, O’connor T, Rutledge T, Duncan J, Compton B, Seng A, Nidich R. Reduced Trauma Symptoms and Perceived Stress in Male Prison Inmates through the Transcendental Meditation Program: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Perm J. 2016 Fall;20(4):16-007
  57. Nidich S, Seng A, Compton B, O’connor T, Salerno JW, Nidich R. Transcendental Meditation and Reduced Trauma Symptoms in Female Inmates: A Randomized Controlled Study. Perm J. 2017;21:16-008. .
  58. Nidich S, Mills PJ, Rainforth M, Heppner P, Schneider RH, Rosenthal NE, Salerno J, Gaylord-King C, Rutledge T. Non-trauma-focused meditation versus exposure therapy in veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder: a randomised controlled trial. Lancet Psychiatry. 2018 Dec;5(12):975-986.
  59. Norris KC, Salerno J, Bairey Merz CN, Kaushik V, Gelleta S, Castillo A, Nidich S, Gaylord-King C, Schneider RH. A randomized controlled trial of meditation and health education on carotid intima-media thickness and major adverse cardiovascular events in Black men and women. Front Med (Lausanne). 2025 Mar 19;12:1513699.
  60. Orme-Johnson DW, Wallace RK, Dillbeck MC, Alexander CN, Ball OE. Improved functional organization of the brain through the Maharishi Technology of the Unified Field as indicated by changes in EEG coherence and its cognitive correlates: a proposed model of higher states of consciousness. In RA Chalmers, G Clements, H Schenkluhn, M Weinless (eds), Scientific Research on Maharishi’s Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi programme: Collected Papers, Volume 2 (pp.2245-2266). Vlodrop, Netherlands: MERU Press, 1989
  61. Paul-Labrador M, Polk D, Dwyer JH, Velasquez I, Nidich SI, Rainforth M, Schneider RH, Bairey Merz CN. Effects of a randomized controlled trial of Transcendental Meditation on components of the metabolic syndrome in subjects with coronary heart disease. Archives of Internal Medicine2006 166(11):1218-1224
  62. Pelletier KR. Influence of Transcendental Meditation upon autokinetic perception. Perceptual and Motor Skills 1974 39(7):1031-1034
  63. Pirot, M. The effects of the Transcendental Meditation technique upon auditory discrimination. Department of Psychology, University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, 1973.
  64. Ramirez J. The Transcendental Meditation program as a possible treatment modality for drug offenders: Evaluation of a pilot project at Milan Federal Correctional Institution. In RA Chalmers, G Clements, H Schenkluhn, M Weinless (eds), Scientific Research on Maharishi’s Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi programme: Collected Papers, Volume 2 (pp.1118-1134). Vlodrop, Netherlands: MERU Press, 1989
  65. Raskin, M., Bali, L. R., & Peeke, H. V. (1980). Muscle Biofedback and Transcendental Meditation. Archives of General Psychiatry 1980 37(1): 93-97
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  67. Reddy, MK, Lakshmi AJ, Rao VR. The effects of the TM program on athletic performance. In DW Orme-Johnson, JT Farrow (eds), Scientific Research on Maharishi’s Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi programme: Collected Papers, Volume 1 (346­-358). Rheinweiler, West Germany: MERU Press, 1977
  68. Rosenthal JM. The effect of the Transcendental Meditation program on self-actualization, self-concept, and hypnotic susceptibility. In RA Chalmers, G Clements, H Schenkluhn, M Weinless (eds), Scientific Research on Maharishi’s Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi programme: Collected Papers, Volume 2 (pp.1036-1037). Vlodrop, Netherlands: MERU Press, 1989
  69. Ruini, C. Vescovelli, F. Facchini, M. et al R. Quiet time- A school program based on meditation for promoting well-being in children: Results from a controlled investigation. European Journal of Psychology and Educational Research. 2023 6(1):1-9. doi: 10.12973/ejper.6.1.1
  70. Schneider RH, Alexander CN, Staggers F, Rainforth M, Salerno JW, Hartz A, Arndt S, Barnes VA, Nidich SI. Long-term effects of stress reduction on mortality in persons >/=55 years of age with systemic hypertension. American Journal of Cardiology 2005 95(9):1060-1064
  71. Schneider RH, Castillo-Richmond A, Alexander CN, Myers H, Kaushik V, Aranguri C, Norris K, Haney C, Rainforth M, Calderon R, Nidich S. Behavioral treatment of hypertensive heart disease in African Americans: rationale and design of a randomized controlled trial. Behavioral Medicine 2001 27(2):83-95
  72. Schneider RH, Grim CE, Rainforth MV, Kotchen T, Nidich SI, Gaylord-King C, Salerno JW, Kotchen JM, AlexanderCN.Stress reduction in the secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease: randomized,controlled trial of Transcendental Meditation and health education in blacks.  Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes, 2012, Nov;5(6):750-8.
  73. Schneider RH, Staggers F, Alexander CN, Sheppard W, Rainforth M, Kondwani K, Smith S, King CG. A randomized controlled trial of stress reduction for hypertension in older African Americans. Hypertension 1995 26(5):820-827
  74. Schneider RH,  Clarence Grim, Theodore Kotchen, Komal Marwaha, Jane Kotchen, John W Salerno, Carolyn Gaylord King, Sanford Nidich, Charles N Alexander. Randomized controlled trial of stress reduction with meditation and health education in black men and women with high normal and normal blood pressure. American Journal of Preventive Cardiology, 2021 Dec 1;8:100279. doi: 10.1016/j.ajpc.2021.100279.
  75. Shecter, H. The Transcendental Meditation program in the classroom: A psychological evaluation. Doctoral thesis (summary), Graduate Department of Psychology, York University, North York, Ontario, Canada .Dissertation Abstracts International 38 (07) (1977): 3372B.In DW Orme-Johnson, JT Farrow (eds), Scientific Research on Maharishi’s Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi program: Collected Papers, Volume 1 (346­-358). Rheinweiler, West Germany: MERU Press, 1977
  76. Sheppard DH, Staggers F, John L. The effects of a stress management program in a high security government agency. Anxiety, Stress and Coping 1997 10(4):341-350
  77. So KT, Orme-Johnson DW. Three randomized experiments on the holistic longitudinal effects of the Transcendental Meditation technique on cognition. Intelligence 2001 29(5):419-440
  78. Smith, J. C. Psychotherapeutic effects of transcendental meditation with controls for expectation of relief and daily sitting. Journal of Consulting and  Clinical Psychology 1976 44(4): 630-637.
  79. Sultan, S. E. A study of the ability of individuals trained in Transcendental Meditation to achieve and maintain levels of physiological relaxation. Master’s thesis (summary), School of Human Behavior, United States International University, San Diego, California, USA, 1975.
  80. Tanner MA, Travis F, Gaylord-King C, Haaga DAF, Grosswald S, Schneider RH. The effects of the Transcendental Meditation program on mindfulness. Journal of Clinical Psychology 2009 65(6):574-589
  81. Taub E, Steiner SS, Weingarten E, Walton KG. Effectiveness of broad spectrum approaches to relapse prevention in severe alcoholism: a long-term, randomised, controlled trial of Transcendental Meditation, EMG biofeedback and electronic neurotherapy. Alcoholism Treatment Quarterly 1994 11(1/2):187-220
  82. Travis F, Grosswald S, Stixrud W. ADHD, brain functioning, and Transcendental Meditation practice. Mind & Brain, the Journal of Psychiatry. 2011 2(1):73-81
  83. Travis F, Haaga DA, Hagelin J, Tanner M, Nidich S, Gaylord-King C, Grosswald S, Rainforth M, Schneider RH. Effects of Transcendental Meditation practice on brain functioning and stress reactivity in college students. International Journal of Psychophysiology 2009 71(2):170-176
  84. Travis FT, Haaga DH, Hagelin JS, Tanner M, Arenander A, NidichS, Gaylord-King C, Grosswald S, Rainforth M, Schneider RH. A self-referential default brain state: patterns of coherence, power, and eLORETA sources during eyes-closed rest and the Transcendental Meditation practice.Cognitive Processing 2010 11(1):21-30
  85. Travis FT, Wallace RK. Autonomic and EEG patterns during eyes-closed rest and Transcendental Meditation (TM) practice: a basis for a neural model of TM practice. Consciousness and Cognition 1999 8(3):302-18
  86. Travis F, Valosek L, Konrad A 4th, Link J, Salerno J, Scheller R, Nidich S. Effect of meditation on psychological distress and brain functioning: A randomized controlled study. Brain Cogn. 2018 Aug;125:100-105.
  87. Valosek L, Link J, Mills P, Konrad A, Rainforth M, Nidich S. Effect of Meditation on Emotional Intelligence and Perceived Stress in the Workplace: A Randomized Controlled Study. Perm J. 2018 Oct 29;22:17-172.
  88. Valosek L, Wendt S, Link J, Abrams A, Hipps J, Grant J, Nidich R, Loiselle M and Nidich S (2021) Meditation Effective in Reducing Teacher Burnout and Improving Resilience: A Randomized Controlled Study.  Educ. 6:627923. doi: 10.3389/feduc.2021.627923
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  90. Wenneberg SR, Schneider RH, McLean C, Levitsky DK, Walton KG, Mandarino JV,Salerno JW, Wallace RK, Waziri R. A controlled study of the effects of Transcendental Meditation on cardiovascular reactivity and ambulatory blood pressure. International Journal of Neuroscience 1997 89(1/2):15-28
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