Everyone on mindfulness at school? Little effect

Many young people struggle with somber feelings, stress or anxiety symptoms. In a large-scale study, with support from the Fund for Scientific Research Flanders (FWO) and in the context of Red Noses Day (now "Jez!"), KU Leuven investigated whether mindfulness at school could help. For eight weeks, several class groups in eleven Flemish secondary schools followed mindfulness training. Would this have positive effects on their mental well-being? The results of this study suggest that this is not the case. The youth in class groups (4th, 5th and 6th year secondary) who took the training were surveyed at different times and, on average, they did not have fewer symptoms or deal with difficult feelings in a more helpful way than the youth in class groups who did not take mindfulness training. Importance of self-interest. The KU Leuven researchers also went looking for the causes of the lack of a positive effect of mindfulness training in the classroom in Flemish adolescents.