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Do contemplative practices make us more moral?

Kevin Berryman1, Sara W Lazar2, Jakob Hohwy1

  • 1Monash Centre for Consciousness & Contemplative Studies, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC, Australia.

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Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Contemplative practices like mindfulness meditation show mixed effects on morality. While some moral aspects improve, others may be negatively influenced, highlighting the need for a multifactorial approach to understanding their impact.

Keywords:
contemplative practicemeditationmindfulnessmoralmoral functioningprosocial

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Area of Science:

  • Moral Psychology
  • Cognitive Science
  • Neuroscience of Contemplative Practices

Background:

  • Contemplative practices are prevalent and historically linked to morality.
  • Previous research on contemplative practices and morality is limited by unidimensional assessments.
  • A gap exists in understanding how these practices influence complex, interdependent moral functioning.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the impact of contemplative practices on morality using a multifactorial construct.
  • To assess outcomes across multiple dimensions of moral cognition and behavior.
  • To provide an empirically rigorous examination of mindfulness meditation's effects on moral actions.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized a multifactorial construct to assess outcomes of a contemplative intervention.
  • Examined effects across diverse dimensions of moral cognition.
  • Measured impacts on moral behavior and decision-making.

Main Results:

  • Mindfulness meditation demonstrated positive influences on certain dimensions of morality.
  • Negative influences were also observed across different aspects of moral functioning.
  • The study highlights a complex, distributed effect of contemplative practices on morality.

Conclusions:

  • A multifactorial approach is crucial for accurately evaluating the impact of contemplative practices on morality.
  • Mindfulness meditation has both beneficial and detrimental effects on moral functioning.
  • Further research is needed to fully elucidate the relationship between contemplative practices and multifaceted morality.