- significant improvement in both groups in levels of stress, tension , anxiety, attention, perception, as well as in the self-compassion, digit-symbol, mindfulness scores, and in the stages of Shamath. 

- Differences between experienced and less experienced in attention, but no difference in motor speed. Skills that have been steadily developed under less ideal but regular conditions make it much easier to settle attention on the object of meditation when in more ideal settings, such as during a closed retreat.

Difference in Cognitive and Psychological Effects for Experienced vs. Less Experienced Meditators

How often and for how long participants have meditated

Haverford College in Pennsylvania

- the intensity of daily practice regimes
- the duration of a typical training program
- the experience backgrounds of the participants who engage in them

Effective Variables of Retreat Practice in Psychological Research

Kozasa, E.H., Lacerda, S.S., Menezes, C. et al. Effects of a 9-Day Shamatha Buddhist Meditation Retreat on Attention, Mindfulness and Self-Compassion in Participants with a Broad Range of Meditation Experience. Mindfulness 6, 1235–1241 (2015). https://doi-org.ezproxy.haverford.edu/10.1007/s12671-015-0385-8

Effects of a 9-Day Shamatha Buddhist Meditation Retreat on Attention, Mindfulness and Self-Compassion in Participants with a Broad Range of Meditation Experience

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