Field-Effects of Consciousness: A Seventeen-Year Study of the Effects of Group Practice of the Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi Programs on Reducing National Stress in the United States

Abstract

Many conceptions of field-effects of consciousness have been proposed. The most well-developed of these is Maharishi Mahesh Yogi’s, which holds that every individual in society, whether stressed or coherent, contributes to collective consciousness. Collective consciousness in turn impacts the life of every individual, guiding the trends of life in the nation. Over 600 studies have documented that the Transcendental Meditation® and advanced TM-Sidhi® program increase coherence in the individual, as indicated by improved brain integration, health, cognitive abilities, and behavior. Fifty additional studies indicate that these more coherent individuals radiate an influence of coherence throughout society, as reflected in reductions of conflicts and improvements in quality of life. In the present study, interrupted time series analysis was used to evaluate the effectiveness of this population-level health intervention that was implemented at a clearly defined point in time. It found that during the Demonstration period of 2007-2011, compared to the Baseline period of 2000 to 2006, when a group practicing the Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi techniques reached or exceeded a predicted required threshold of √1% of the U.S. population (1725) there were significant and meaningful trend reductions in indicators of national stress: homicides, rape, aggravated assault, robbery, infant mortality, drug-related deaths, motor vehicle fatalities, fatalities due to injuries in youths ages 10-19, and in a composite index of all eight variables (p’s < .0001). Moreover, from 2007 to 2016, when the size of the group decreased to below the required threshold, all stress indicators increased again. Potential alternative explanations in terms of changes in economic conditions, political leadership, population demographics, and policing strategies could not explain the results. The results support a new highly practical field-theoretic understanding of social dynamics.

Empirical Evaluation of the Possible Contribution of Group Practice of the Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi Program to Reduction in Drug-Related Mortality

“…The findings of the current study are consistent with those of six prior research studies on this social experiment (see Section 2.6 ) that also supported the hypothesis that practice of the TM and TM-Sidhi program by a group of theoretically predicted size (√1% of the U.S. population) would be associated with statistically and practically significant reductions in a diverse set of negative U.S. public health indicators relative to baseline trends [ 13 , 44 , 63 , 64 , 65 , 70 ]. As in the current study, the improvement in these indicators could not be plausibly explained by alternative factors.…”

“…Moreover, from 2012 to 2016, when the size of the MIU group decreased to below the required √1% threshold, trends for all stress indicators increased significantly. Standardized effect sizes and percentage changes in all variables, as well as substantial estimated reductions in fatalities and the number of crimes, supported practical significance of the findings (for details, refer to [ 70 ]). The reported findings for annual data on rates of homicide and drug-related death replicate those for monthly data reported in Cavanaugh et al [ 44 ] and the current study, respectively.…”

“…As in the current study, the improvement in these indicators could not be plausibly explained by alternative factors. Like the current study, two of these prior studies also included follow-up data [ 44 , 70 ]. As in the present research, these two prior studies reported significant reductions of negative public health indicators during the demonstration phase that were followed by significant increases in these indicators relative to the demonstration-period trend when the size of the TM-Sidhi group fell below the critical √1% level.…”

“…Also included are possible level shifts (intercept changes) between segments. Segmented-trend regression models were employed in six previous peer-reviewed studies of this social experiment [ 13 , 44 , 63 , 64 , 65 , 70 ].…”

“…A second recent study analyzes 17 years of annual data from the same social experiment evaluated in the current study [ 70 ]. Segmented trend regression analysis of time series with ARIMA modelling of regression errors found statistically and practically significant reductions in trend compared to baseline trends 2000–2006 in eight rates of fatalities and violent crime, as well as a composite index of these measures, during the same years as the monthly demonstration period of the current dfr study, 2007–2011.…”