The study represents one of the first controlled trials investigating how mindfulness can benefit youth.
A team of researchers led by Professor Willem Kuyken from the University of Exeter, in association with the University of Oxford, the University of Cambridge and the Mindfulness in Schools Project, recruited 522 students, aged between 12 and 16 years, from 12 secondary schools to take part in the study.
256 students at six of the schools were taught the Mindfulness in Schools Project’s curriculum, a nine-week introduction to mindfulness designed for the classroom.
The other 266 students did not receive mindfulness training, and acted as the control group.
After a three-month period, students followed up during exam time. Researchers found that those children who participated in the mindfulness program reported fewer depressive symptoms, lower stress, and greater well-being than the youth in the control group.
For more information about the study, click here.
