Reducing Stress in College Students through Meditation

Abstract

The focus of the study was to test college student’s levels of stress and determine if meditation can reduce the amount of stress they experience. We created a pretest for participants to rank their stress levels and then had them meditate for a month and take a post-test ranking their stress levels after completing meditation. Many college students handle stress in an unhealthy way such as drinking, drugs, creating a poor sleep schedule, or not managing their stress at all. Specifically, we found that students who meditate potentially heighten their focus in class, improve their physical & mental health, provide better sleep, decrease addiction and substance abuse, and increase confidence and academic success.