Mindfulness meditation for workplace wellness: An evidence map.
Lara G Hilton, Nell J Marshall, Aneesa Motala and 7 others
PMID 31156202WHAT IT FOUND
Mindfulness evidence for workplace wellness was mixed across 175 systematic reviews.
Some reviews reported positive effects for nurse state anxiety and depression and for caregiver stress and depression, but educator effects were unclear and general workplace results were mixed.
Key findings
01For nurses, MBSR and mindfulness meditation reduced state anxiety and depression in a review of 17 RCTs, but did not reduce trait anxiety or stress.
02For informal caregivers, a meta-analysis of 3 RCTs reported positive post-intervention effects for stress and depression.
03For educators, the largest review of 12 RCTs found unclear effects on anxiety, depression, stress and burnout; another review across manufacturing, healthcare, offices and schools found mixed results for stress, burnout and general mental health.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they found
Read the rest of this summary
You get three full summaries a month, free, and we do not ask for a card. Search, the TL;DRs and your library stay unlimited either way.
What it does not show
The paper is an evidence map, not a trial or meta-analysis of mindfulness itself, so it cannot tell whether a workplace mindfulness course will improve employee health, wellbeing or performance. Much of the evidence was unclear because reviews had only one study, conflicting results, no pooled estimates, or reached different conclusions. Workplace-specific evidence was limited: nurse effects did not cover trait anxiety or stress, educator effects were unclear, general workplace results were mixed, and the sitting-time finding rested on one study. Definitions of mindfulness-based interventions varied, and effects likely differ by program type and comparator. Most programs in the included reviews were delivered by healthcare professionals in clinical settings, and the paper says translation to workplace courses is unclear.
Declared interests
No author conflicts were declared. The work builds on a larger project to inform evidence-based decision making at the US Department of Veterans Affairs and was supported by an expert panel.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read this as proof that workplace mindfulness improves employee wellness. It maps reviews rather than testing mindfulness directly, and workplace-specific results are unclear, mixed, or based on few studies.