Transcript
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PAPER 152

TRANSCENDENTAL MEDITATION AND THE FLEXIBILITY OF CONSTRUCTIONS OF REALITY

WILLIAM CHARLES MADSEN

Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Palo Alto, California, U.S.A.

Research completed June 1976.

Long-term participants in the Transcendental Meditation programme were found to be more open-minded than both non-meditators and prospective meditators.-EDITORS

The following is an abbreviated version of the author's original senior honor's thesis to obtain the degree of Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, Department of Psychology, Stanford University.

This study examines the genesis of and the possibility for change in inflexible constructions of reality, or closed-mindedness. It analyzes the theories of Fromm, Rokeach, and Maslow concerning the genesis of in­flexible constructions and tests the hypothesis that Transcendental Meditation (TM) may facilitate increased degrees of construct flexibility. A comparison of scores on the Rokeach Dogmatism Scale revealed that a group of experienced meditators (N=20; mean length of time practicing TM, 47.45 months) were signifi­cantly more open-minded (p <.001) than a group of prospective meditators (N =17), a nonmeditating con­trol group which was not interested in beginning any type of meditation technique (N =23), and a group of nonmeditators who were thinking about learning some type of meditative technique (N = 8). It is concluded that the practice of Transcendental Meditation increases open-mindedness in three interconnected ways: by providing a means to realize the security and sense of unity lost with the severance of primary ties; by facili­tating the process of self-realization as an alternative to closed-mindedness; and by allowing individuals to transcend their constructions of the processes of reality and to experience reality directly and intuitively.

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INTRODUCTION

In our world of constant flux, a major problem facing humankind is that of inflexible constructions. Constructions are defined by George Kelly ( 1963, pp. 8-9) as the transparent patterns or templates which we create and then attempt to fit over the re­alities of which the world is composed. The realities of which the world is composed are a series of dy­namic processes. However, processes are extremely difficult to accept, comprehend, and deal with, and we as individuals are much more accustomed to conceptualizing in terms of states. Consequently, we place structures on these processes in order to better understand them. These structures, which by their very nature are static entities, comprise our ways of construing the world.

There arises here an inevitable conflict between the dynamic processes which constitute reality and the static constructions which are used to understand reality. As a result, these constructions are only approximations of reality and must be continually revised as the processes change so that they may continue to be effective for understanding and interacting with the world.

Inflexible constructions are ones which are not easily subject to such continual revision. By holding inflexible constructions, individuals become locked into interpretations of the world which become less and less effective as the processes which are being interpreted continue to change.

Inflexible constructions are a major inhibition to growth and creativity on both a personal and societal level. Both growth and creativity presuppose change, and inflexible construct systems effectively block such change.

In this context it would be of interest to examine conditions which encourage and perpetuate inflex­ible construct systems and activities that might in­crease one's degree of construct flexibility.

ERICH FROMM AND THE PROCESS OF INDIVIDU­ATION-One theoretical framework from which it is possible to analyze the genesis of inflexible con­struct systems is offered by Erich Fromm. He be­lieves that individuals become disposed to hold in­flexible construct systems to the extent to which they are made to feel alone, isolated, and helpless in the world in which they live, and thus anxious about what a perceived threatening world holds in store for them (Fromm, 1947).

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Fromm describes this as an outcome of the pro­cess of individuation. Individuation is the process of an individual's growing emergence from his/her original ties to the natural and social world. These ties which exist before the emergence of the in­dividual and which connect him/her to the outside world are called primary ties. Primary ties are essen­tially the injunctions which direct and guide us by "telling us what to do". They imply a lack of free­dom, but provide a sense of security and orientation which forms the foundation from which to later seek this freedom. Thus, the process of individuation is evolution from the security and rootedness of pri­mary ties to the freedom of individualism.

This process has a dialectical quality. On one hand, it entails the development of positive freedom (freedom to) which results in the growth of self­strength and self-integrity, while on the other hand, it entails the growth of separateness and isolation. Negative freedom is essentially freedom from primary ties which give meaning and security to the individual, and positive freedom is essentially the freedom to carve out new meaning and purpose in one's life once freed from those ties.

If these two aspects of the dialectic evolved at the same rate, there would be no problem. Unfortu­nately, they do not. While the growing separation is a natural process, the development of self-strength has been impeded by various social and economic conditions.

This poses the problem of how an individual is to find new meaning and orientation in his/her life. One solution to this problem is regression or the attempt to re-establish primary ties. This is the attempt to escape the insecurity and anxiety of separation by giving up freedom and trying to elim­inate the gap between one's individual self and the rest of the world. One means of accomplishing this is by authoritarianism, which Fromm (1941, p. 163) defines as the:

... tendency to give up the independence of one's own individual self and to fuse one's self with somebody or something outside of oneself in order to acquire the strength which the individual self is lacking.

Through authoritarianism, the individual tries to ac­quire secondary ties which will teplace the lost pri­mary ties. Authoritarianism results in inflexible construct systems because one's constructions be­come based on external authority rather than one's

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own perceptions of the world, and the revision of these constructions in accordance with the changing processes of one's world becomes even more in­hibited. Consequently, one is increasingly removed from one's own world.

Thus, Fromm sees inflexible construct systems stemming from authoritarianism as an attempt to avoid the feelings of anxiety and isolation which arise from the loss of security and orientation in the process of individuation. This is a very good theor­etical framework from which to analyze the genesis of inflexible construct systems, but it lacks any supporting empirical research. Consequently, it is necessary to turn to a more empirical framework from which to continue this analysis. One such framework is offered by Milton Rokeach ~nd his concept of belief-disbelief systems.

MILTON ROKEACH AND BELIEF-DISBELIEF SYSTEMS

-The belief-disbelief system includes a system of beliefs which one accepts and a series of systems which one rejects. Rokeach (1960, p. 33) defines the belief system as:

... all the beliefs, sets, expectancies or hypotheses, conscious or unconscious, that a person at a given time accepts as true of the world he lives in.

He defines the disbelief system as a:

... series of subsystems rather than merely a single one, which contain all the disbeliefs, sets, expect­ancies, conscious and unconscious, that to some de­gree or another, a person at a given time rejects as false. (Rokeach, 1960, p. 33)

This concept is essentially the same as that of con­struct systems because it is used to represent:

... each man's total framework for understanding his universe as best he can. (Rokeach, 1960, p. 34)

Belief-disbelief systems can be distinguished by their degree of openness or closedness. These should not be thought of as two separate states, but rather as two extremes of a continuum. Openness and closedness are simply ideal types exaggerated for the convenience of analysis. No individual has a completely open or completely closed belief­disbelief system. Furthermore, the degree of open­ness or closedness can vary within limits as con­ditions vary (though the degree of those limits is a controversial matter).

Closed-mindedness generally refers to a number of things: a closed way of thinking which can be as­sociated with any ideology regardless of content, an authoritarian outlook on life, an intolerance toward

those with opposing beliefs, and a sufferance of those with similar beliefs. It refers to the way in which a person thinks; to the structure and not con­tent of belief-disbelief systems. Content refers to what is believed, while structure refers to the way in which it is believed.

One of Rokeach's major contributions to this field was his development of a viable measuring device for open and closed-mindedness. This device is called the Rokeach Dogmatism Scale (Rokeach, 1960).

Rokeach agrees with Fromm that the insecurity resulting from a threatening world lies at the basis of closed-mindedness. He believes that belief-dis­belief systems serve two powerful and conflicting motives at the same time. There is a need for a cog­nitive framework to know and to understand, and a need to ward off the threatening aspects of reality. To the extent that the cognitive need to know is pre­dominant and the need to ward off threat is absent, open belief-disbelief systems should result. But as the need to ward off threat becomes stronger and the need to know weaker, it is more likely that closed systems will emerge. Thus a person will have open belief-disbelief systems insofar as possible and closed ones insofar as necessary.

There are many studies which show increased closed-mindedness as a result of increased threat (Rokeach and Bonier, 1960; Hanson and Bush, 1971; Berkowitz and Knurek, 1969; Dittes, 1961; Zander and Havelin, 1960). Furthermore, several researchers have conducted historical studies on the relationship between threat and dogmatism (Rokeach, Toch, and Rottman, 1960; Sales, 1972; Sales, 1973). Thus, the cbntention of both Fromm and Rokeach that threat underlies closed­mindedness is borne out by empirical evidence.

ABRAHAM MASLOW: THE NEED TO KNOW AND THE

NEED FOR SAFETY -A third framework for the analysis of the genesis of inflexible construct systems is offered by Abraham Maslow (1963). He agrees with Rokeach that belief-disbelief systems serve a dual function. He describes this function as gratifying a need for knowledge and a need for safety. He feels that the need to know is a "higher" need than the need for safety, which means that the need to feel safe, secure, unanxious, and unafraid is prepotent (stronger) over curiosity or the need to know. In short, to the extent that the need for safety (from a threatening, unpredictable, and unorganized world) remains ungratified, belief-disbelief systems

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will focus (relatively, not exclusively) on its grati­fication (rather than the gratification of the need to know), and to this extent the belief-disbelief system will be closed. This relationship between insecurity and increased closed-mindedness is supported by several studies (Johnson, 1967; Stricht and Fox, 1966).

From these three frameworks, an understanding of the genesis of closed-mindedness may be gleaned. Through the process of individuation, an individual becomes cut off from his /her primary ties. The severing of these ties (which gave meaning and orientation) leaves the individual facing a potentially threatening and insecure world. To the extent to which an individual thus perceives such a threatening and insecure world, his/her belief­disbelief system may be closed as one way of coping with the anxiety of this situation. This leads us into the question of the possibility of change in this situ­ation; specifically whether it is possible to increase an individual's degree of open-mindedness.

OPEN-MINDEDNESS: FIXED OR VARIABLE TRAIT

-Adorno et al. (1950) take a psychoanalytic ap­proach to this question, regarding closed-minded­ness as a relatively fixed characteristic of person­ality which is determined in childhood. As a result, they see little possibility for any change. Rokeach ( 1960) stresses the influence of contemporary fac­tors, believing that closed-mindedness is not as fixed a trait as Adorno and his colleagues would have us believe. However, his emphasis is not on change in one's degree of open-mindedness, but on conditions and personality correlates of closed­mindedness. Thus, he too offers little hope for sig­nificant change.

The assumption of the present study is that one's degree of open or closed-mindedness is indeed susceptible to change. This approach is in the same vein as Allport's (1960) concept of open personality systems. Allport argues that personality is not a stable collection of traits, but rather an open system in continuous interaction with its environment. This assumption not only offers more hope in this situ­ation but is also a very viable notion, being based on "hard" empirical evidence, most notably the Hanson and Bush (1971) study which showed closed-mindedness to be significantly affected by situational threat, and a study by Sales and Friend (1973). These two studies provide very strong support for the contention that open-mindedness operates within an open personality system and that it is indeed possible to increase one's degree of

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open-mindedness.

One activity which might serve to facilitate open­mindedness is the practice of Transcendental Medi­tation. The rest of this study will be devoted to an analysis of this possibility.

TRANSCENDENTAL MEDITATION-Transcendental Meditation is not a philosophy or religion, but a practical technique with the purpose of:

... connecting the outer field of activity with the un­bounded potentiality of the inner man in order to enrich aU aspects of life. (Forem, 1973, p. 36)

The technique was introduced in 1958 by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. It is not a new technique, but one which has existed for centuries, rising out of the Vedic wisdom. It is a technique which has been lost and rediscovered and lost again many times throughout history (Maharishi, 1969, pp. 11, 13).

The Transcendental Meditation technique is de-fined as a:

. .. way of allowing the attention to go from the gross surface level of ordinary thought to increasingly subtle levels, until finally the subtlest level is reached and then transcended. (Forem, 1973, p. 27)

It thereby induces a state of consciousness which is qualitatively different from the three major recog­nized states (waking, sleeping, and dreaming). This state is called "transcendental consciousness" and is characterized by "restful alertness" (Wallace, 1970; Wallace et al., 1971; Wallace et al. , 1972).

Transcendental Meditation is the most widely practiced form of meditation in the United States today, and there exists a wealth of scientific research literature on the subject (Orme-Johnson and Farrow, 1977). Although there is relatively little research dealing with the variability of open-mindedness, there is a considerable amount concerned with the effect of Transcendental Meditation on several characteristics associated closely with closed­mindedness.

EFFECTS OF TRANSCENDENTAL MEDITATION UPON

CHARACTERISTICS OF CLOSED-MINDEDNESS.

1. Transcendental Meditation and Externality -Rokeach (1960, p. 57) suggests that the basic characteristic which determines the degree of openness of a person's belief-disbelief system is the extent to which the person can receive, evaluate, and act on relevant information received from the outside on its own intrinsic merits, unencumbered by irrelevant factors in the situation arising from

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within the person (such as unrelated habits, beliefs, and perceptual cues, irrational ego motives, power needs, the need for self-aggrandizement, the need to allay anxiety etc.) or from the outside (particularly the pressures of reward and punishment arising from external authority). Thus, the more open a person's belief-disbelief system is, the more he/she should be able to evaluate and act on information on its own merits, being governed more by internal self­actualizing forces and less by irrational inner forces. Consequently, he/she should also be more able to resist pressures exerted by external sources to evalu­ate and act according to his/her wishes. Conversely, the more closed a person's belief-disbelief system is, the more difficult it should be to distinguish be­tween information received about the world and in­formation received about the source. Two studies support this contention (Powell, 1962; Vidulich and Kaiman, 1961).

This emphasis on reliance on external authority suggests a strong theoretical similarity between closed-mindedness and Rotter's (1960) concept of externality. Both closed-mindedness and externality are associated with anxiety and susceptibility to in­fluence by external sources of power. While Rokeach believes closed-mindedness is a defense against anxiety (to be discussed shortly) and threat, Rotter believes externality is a defense against the threat of failure and resulting anxiety. Both con­cepts rely on arbitrary reinforcements derived from external authority. This theoretical resemblance is supported by empirical correlations (Clouser and Hjelle, 1970; Sherman et al., 1973).

Several experimenters have examined the re­lationship between Transcendental Meditation and reliance on external authority using the Inner­Directedness scale of Shostrom's Personal Orien­tation Inventory and Rotter's Internal/External Locus of Control Scale. Seeman, Nidich, and Banta ( 1972) administered the Personal Orientation Inven­tory to an experimental group two days prior to their beginning Transcendental Meditation and to a con­trol group of nonmeditators. The two groups did not differ significantly on lnner-Directedness on the first administration. Two months later, following regular meditation by the experimental subjects, the Personal Orientation Inventory was readministered to each group. The researchers found significant changes towards Inner-Directedness for the medi­tation group (p < .01) with no changes for the con­trol group. Nidich, Seeman, and Dreskin (1974)

replicated this study and found the same results (again significant at p < .01). Hjelle ( 1974) adminis­tered the Personal Orientation Inventory and Rotter's Locus of Control Scale to experienced meditators (mean length 22 months) and beginning meditators (just before they were to start) and found significant differences in the direction of increased internal control for the experienced meditators over the beginning meditators (p<.001 for both scales).

Dick and Ragland ( 1977) randomly selected two groups from the regular client population of the University of Oklahoma Counseling Center, in­structing one group in Transcendental Meditation and the other to rest fifteen minutes twice daily. They measured their change on the Inner-Directedness scale of the Personal Orientation Inventory over a period of time and found significant changes in the direction of increased Inner-Directedness for the meditation group only (p <. 05). This implies that the effect came specifically from the practice of Transcendental Meditation, rather than from the relaxation attributed to just sitting quietly. -

To further investigate the contention that these differences are due to meditation rather than some preceding variable, Stek and Bass (1973) com­pared individuals intending to begin Transcendental Meditation and those showing no interest in the practice on the Personal Orientation Inventory and on Rotter's Locus of Control Scale. They found no significant differences between the two groups, suggesting that the effects shown by the other studies are in fact due to the practice of Transcen­dental Meditation itself, rather than to a preceding variable.

2. Transcendental Meditation and Time Perspec­tive-A second major characteristic of closed­mindedness is time perspective. Rokeach believes that closed systems are differentiated from open ones by: "a relatively narrow, future-oriented (vs. broad) time perspective" (Rokeach, 1960, p. 56). This future orientation appears to be due to the in­creased insecurity and threatening character of the present which forces a closed-minded individual to look to the future. This understanding finds empiri­cal support in the studies of Zurcher et al. ( 1967) and Rokeach and Bonier ( 1960).

The practice of Transcendental Meditation has been shown effective in expanding one's time per­spective and in bringing about an increased empha-

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sis on the present. The three studies using the Per­sonal Orientation Inventory which have been pre­viously mentioned-Seeman, Nidich, and Banta (1972), Nidich, Seeman, and Dreskin (1974), and Hjelle (1974)-have all found significant changes in the Time Competence scale as a result of Tran­scendental Meditation in the direction of increased Time Competence (a broader time perspective with increased emphasis on the present). The changes were significant at p<.05, p<.05, and p<.001, respectively. Dick and Ragland ( 1977) found a sig­nificant change towards increased Time Compe­tence (p <. 025) for their meditating group, with no change for their relaxation group. Stek and Bass ( 1973) found no difference on Time Competence between individuals intending to begin Transcen­dental Meditation and those not intending to begin it. These last two studies imply that it is the practice of meditation itself which is responsible for the changes in Time Competence.

3. Transcendental Meditation and Personal In­adequacy-A third characteristic of closed­mindedness which is susceptible to change is low self-esteem and feelings of personal inadequacy. The feelings of powerlessness arising from the loss of primary ties which characterize closed-minded­ness also give rise to feelings of personal in­adequacy and lowered self-esteem. This relation­ship between closed-mindedness and low self­esteem is documented in the studies of Larsen and Schwendiman ( 1969), Franklin ( 1973), and Hess and Lindner (1973).

Transcendental Meditation has been shown to increase one's sense of personal adequacy and self­esteem. Van den Berg and Mulder (1977), in a nine­week study of two groups matched for sex and edu­cational level, found that individuals after learning Transcendental Meditation significantly decreased in their feelings of Physical Inadequacy (p <. 05) and Social Inadequacy (p <. 1 0) as measured by the Netherlands Personality Inventory, whereas non­meditators showed no changes in their level of feelings of self-adequacy over the same period of time. Seeman, Nidich, and Banta (1972), Nidich, Seeman, and Dreskin (1974), and Hjelle (1974) in the previously mentioned studies, all found in­creased self-regard (as measured by the Self-regard scale of the Personal Orientation Inventory) as are­sult of Transcendental Meditation (p<.01,p<.10, and p < .001, respectively). Fehr, Nerstheimer, and

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Torber ( 1977) found that experienced meditators scored significantly higher on self-assuredness (p<.01) than nonmeditators as measured by the Freiburger Personality Inventory. Nidich, Seeman, and Dreskin ( 197 4) also found increased self­acceptance (as measured by the Personal Orien­tation Inventory) as a result of Transcendental Medi­tation.

4. Transcendental Meditation and Anxiety-A fourth characteristic associated with closed-minded­ness is that of anxiety. Rokeach ( 1960, p. 69) be­lieves closed-mindedness ''represents in its totality a tightly woven network of cognitive defenses against anxiety.'' This relationship between closed-mindedness and increased anxiety is also empirically validated (Rokeach and Kemp, 1960; Norman, 1966; Fillenbaum and Jackman, 1961; Rebhum, 1966).

There have been many studies which show that Transcendental Meditation is effective in reducing both trait and state anxiety. Orme-Johnson et al. (1973) compared two groups of staff members of the Fort Bliss drug abuse program over a ten-week period and found that the individuals who learned Transcendental Meditation showed significant de­creases in anxiety (p <. 05) as measured by the Taylor Manifest Anxiety Scale, whereas the control group of nonmeditators showed no such change in their levels of anxiety. Hjelle (1974) compared experienced meditators and beginning meditators on a modified version of the Taylor Manifest Anxiety Scale and found that the experienced meditators exhibited significantly lower levels of anxiety (p<.001).

Ferguson and Gowan ( 1976) compared beginning meditators and nonmeditators over a six-week period, and then after six weeks compared the be­ginning meditators with experienced meditators. They found that the beginning meditators exhibited significantly reduced anxiety, as measured by the Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, after six weeks' practice of Transcendental Meditation (p<.001), while no significant change was seen in nonmeditating c~ntrol subjects. Furthermore, the experienced meditators had significantly lower levels of anxiety than the short-term meditators (p<.025).

Ballou ( 1977), using the same test, replicated the findings of Ferguson and Gowan over a ten-week

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period for meditators and nonmeditators. Whereas the meditators showed a significant decrease in anxiety levels, the nonmeditators showed no such decrease. Furthermore, his control group was div­ided into those initially interested in learning Tran­scendental Meditation and those uninterested, and he found no significant difference in their levels of anxiety. This implies that the effect is in fact due to the practice of Transcendental Meditation itself, rather than to some preceding factor which also accounted for the interest in meditation.

This narrowing of other possible preceding fac­tors is continued in a study by Cunningham and Koch ( 1973) in which they took 48 inmates who volunteered to learn Transcendental Meditation and selected 30 to learn, using the remaining 18 as con­trols. On tests designed to measure anxiety they found significant changes in anxiety for the medi­tating group over twenty weeks (in the direction of decreased anxiety), but no such change in the control group. Again the effect appears to be due to the practice of Transcendental Meditation itself, rather than to a third factor which caused both the interest in meditation and the decrease in anxiety.

Nidich, Seeman, and Seibert (1977) have pro­vided more evidence that the decrease in anxiety is due to the specific practice of Transcendental Medi­tation rather than relaxation. They compared two groups on the STAI A-State scale over six weeks. One group was instructed to sit quietly twice a day with their eyes closed, while the other was in­structed to meditate normally. They found that the meditating group showed significant changes in the direction of lower levels of anxiety (p <. 05), while the control group did not.

Further evidence for a causal relationship be­tween Transcendental Meditation and reduced anxiety may be found in the physiology of anxiety. Pitts (1969) showed that anxiety symptoms and attacks can be induced by infusions of lactate. He theorizes that excess lactate may interfere with normal functioning of nerve impulses, thus causing the symptoms of anxiety. Wallace (1970) took blood samples just before, during, and 30 minutes after subjects meditated, and found that the lactate level decreases markedly at the beginning of medi­tation and remains at a low level afterwards. Tran­scendental Meditation may therefore be useful in preventing anxiety attacks, as well as in decreasing anxiety.

HYPOTHESIS

Transcendental Meditation has been shown to ease the anxiety, feelings of personal inadequacy, narrow time perspective, and outer-directedness characteristic of closed-mindedness. It is therefore hypothesized that Transcendental Meditation will facilitate increased degrees of open-mindedness. The purpose of this study will be to test this hypoth­esis empirically.

METHOD

The Rokeach Dogmatism Scale (Form E) (Rokeach, 1960) was administered to four groups: a nonmeditating control group, which was unin­terested in beginning any type of meditative tech­nique (N = 23), a group of nonmeditators who were thinking about beginning some type of meditative technique (N = 8), a group of prospective meditators (N = 17), and a group of experienced meditators (N=20).

The prospective meditators were individuals just about to begin the practice of Transcendental Medi­tation. The Dogmatism Scale was given to them at a preparatory lecture.* The Dogmatism Scales were distributed with enclosed self-addressed stamped envelopes for their return (as it was not feasible to have the subjects complete the questionnaire at the TM center at the time of their distribution). The subjects were instructed to fill out the questionnaires at home and then "drop them in the mail." There is obviously a self-selective process here, but the conditions were arranged so that this process existed in all of the groups and it is therefore believed to equalize out.

The experienced meditators were individuals who had been practicing Transcendental Meditation from 24 to 84 months (mean length 47.45 months). The Dogmatism Scale was given to them at "ad­vanced" meetings at the TM center with self­addressed stamped envelopes for their return (again the same self-selective process).

The two groups of prospective and experienced meditators were divided between college students

* There are seven steps involved in beginning the practice of TM: an introductory lecture, a preparatory lecture, a personal interview after the preparatory lecture, personal instruction in the technique, and three successive follow-up meetings.

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and older residents of Palo Alto, California and surrounding communities, and consisted of both males and females.

The nonmeditating control group was also div­ided between students and older Palo Alto residents. The students were given the Dogmatism Scale at an upperclass dormitory at Stanford University and were asked to fill it out and return it to a specified mailbox in the dorm (to maintain the self-selective process). The questionnaires for the Palo Alto resi­dents were distributed door-to-door, with requests to fill them out and then mail them back in the en­closed self-addressed stamped envelope to continue the self-selective process. It may be argued that this group was more biased because of the increased personal contact, but the fact that the percentage of returned questionnaires (about 30 to 40%) was very similar for each group tends to minimize this possibility.

The nonmeditators who were thinking about starting some type of meditative technique were students from the same dormitory as the nonmedi­tating student control group. These were individ­uals who responded positively to a question asking if they were thinking about starting any type of meditative technique (whereas the uninterested group responded negatively). The control group and the group of students interested in beginning some type of meditative technique consisted of both males and females.

RESULTS

The initial hypothesis that Transcendental Medi­tation will facilitate increased degrees of open­mindedness was confirmed by the results of this study (fig. 1). The scores of the experienced medi­tators on the Dogmatism Scale show them to be significantly more open-minded than both the prospective meditators ( t = 5. 8 7, p < . 001) and the nonmeditating control group (t = 5.54, p < .001).

A further analysis was done to see if the length of time involved in meditation had any effect on the degree of open-mindedness. The experienced group was divided into three subgroups: 24 to 36 months, 42 to 58 months, and 60 to 84 months. A t-test revealed no significant difference between these three groups for their degree of open-mindedness.

The question now arises whether the greater

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140 ----p<.OOl----

-p<.OOl-

EXPERIENCED PROSPECTIVE MEDITATORS MEDITATORS

CONTROL GROUP

FIG. 1. DOGMATISM SCORES FOR EXPERIENCED MEDITATORS,

PROSPECTIVE MEDITATORS, AND CONTROL GROUP. The experi­enced meditators scored significantly lower (p <. 001) than both the prospective meditators and the control group.

degree of open-mindedness is due to the effect of Transcendental Meditation or whether an individ­ual's interest in meditation stems from increased open-mindedness. Two results indicate that it is the practice of Transcendental Meditation which leads to increased open-mindedness rather than the re­verse.

Firstly, there was no significant difference in the degree of open-mindedness between students wh.o were interested in beginning some type of medi­tative technique and those who were uninterested. If interest in meditation came abo.ut as a result of in­creased open-mindedness, it would be expected that the group interested in beginning some type of meditative technique would be more open-minded than those uninterested. Actually the interested group scored higher on the Dogmatism Scale than the uninterested group, suggesting that they were more closed-minded, although this score was not significantly higher.

Secondly, there was also no significant difference in the degree of open-mindedness between the non­meditating control group and the group of prospec­tive meditators (individuals about to begin the prac­tice of TM). The control group was slightly more closed-minded (as judged by the Dogmatism Scale) than the prospective meditators, but not signifi­cantly so. This finding provides even stronger con-

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DEVELOPMENT OF PERSONALITY: OPEN-MINDEDNESS -PAPER 152

firmation that the effect seen is due to Transcen­dental Meditation. If individuals who are thinking about starting some type of meditative technique would be expected to be more open-minded than those uninterested, then individuals who have ac­tually decided to start the practice of Transcendental Meditation would be expected to be even more open-minded. This however was not the case. In addition to there being no significant difference be­tween the nonmeditating control group and the prospective meditators, there was also no signifi­cant difference in open-mindedness between the students interested in beginning some type of medi­tative technique and the students in the prospective meditator group. Thus, it seems most likely that Transcendental Meditation does indeed facilitate increased degrees of open-mindedness. The results discussed so far are summarized in table 1.

The three groups (control, prospective medi­tators, and experienced meditators) were also div­ided into subgroups by sex and according to whether they were students or nonstudents (the student/nonstudent classification may be regarded as a rough division by ages 18-24 and 30-50). In an analysis of the degree of open-mindedness among these subgroups, no significant differences were found between student prospective meditators and nonstudent prospective meditators, male prospec­tive meditators and female prospective meditators, student experienced meditators and nonstudent ex­perienced meditators, male experienced meditators and female experienced meditators, and non­meditating males and nonmeditating females. How­ever, there was a significant difference in the degree of open-mindedness between nonmeditating students and nonmeditating nonstudents. The non-

TABLE 1

ANALYSIS OF DoGMATISM SCORES

NO. OF MEAND GROUPS COMPARED SUBJECTS SCORES S.D. /-TEST

Control Group vs. 23 138.47 25.25 1=5.54***

Experienced Meditators 20 100.30 18.85

Prospective Meditators vs. 17 134.65 16.31 1=5.87***

Experienced Meditators 20 100.30 18.85

Uninterested Nonmeditators vs. 12 127.83 22.70 NS

Interested Nonmeditators 8 136.88 12.72

Control Group vs. 23 138.47 25.25 NS

Prospective Meditators 17 134.65 16.31

Interested Nonmeditators vs. 8 136.88 12.72 Prospective Student Meditators 8 136.75 18.00

NS

••• =p< .001, two-tailed test.

meditating students were significantly more open­minded than the nonmeditating nonstudents (t::::::: 2.31' p < .05).

This result implies that it may not be possible to analyze the results by simply comparing the three groups as a whole, and that it may be necessary to compare the subgroups of each condition (control, prospective meditators, and experienced medi­tators) with each other (for example, compare the nonmeditating students with student experienced meditators, compare the nonmeditating nonstudents with nonstudent experienced meditators, etc.). Accordingly, this was done. Each subgroup (student, nonstudent, males, and females) was compared with its corresponding subgroup in each of the three conditions. The results of these com­parisons are summarized in tables 2, 3, and 4 (one for each possible comparison) and in figures 2, 3, and 4.

The results in tables 2 to 4 are consistent with the results discussed so far. When compared by sub­groups (students vs. students, nonstudents vs. non-

TABLE 2

ANALYSIS OF DoGMATISM SCORES FOR NONMEDITATORS AND EXPERIENCED MEDITATORS

SUBGROUPS COMPARED NO. OF MEAND S.D. /-TEST SUBJECTS SCORES

Students (Control) vs. 12 127.83 22.70 I= 3.97***

Students (Experienced) 7 92.71 5.79

Nonstudents (Control) vs. 11 150.09 23.53 1=4.'89***

Nonstudents (Experienced) 1:3 104.38 22.22

Males (Control) vs. 12 142.91 31.88 1=3.71**

Males (Experienced) 8 99.50 7.71

Females (Control) vs. 11 133.63 15.39 1=3.86***

Females (Experienced) 12 100 .. 83 23.98

**=p<.01, two-tailed test. ***=p<.001, two-tailed test.

TABLE 3

ANALYSIS OF DOGMATISM SCORES FOR PROSPECTIVE MEDITATORS AND EXPERIENCED MEDITATORS

SUBGROUPS COMPARED NO. OF ~~~~E~ S.D. I-TEST SUBJECTS

Students (Prospective) vs. 8 136.75 18.00 Students (Experienced) 7 92.71 5.79

1=6.17***

Nonstudents (Prospective) vs. 9 132.77 15.58 Nonstudents (Experienced) 13 104.38 22.22

1=3.31**

Males (Prospective) vs. 7 136.14 13.95 Males (Experienced) 8 99.50 7.71

1=6.41***

Females (Prospective) vs. 10 133.60 18.43 Females (Experienced) 12 100.83 23.98

1=3.53***

•• = p< .01, two-tailed test. ••• =p< .001, two-tailed test.

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students, males vs. males, and females vs. females), the experienced meditators are still significantly more open-minded than both prospective meditators and nonmeditators. It is therefore reasonable to assume that there is no significant difference in open-mindedness between the nonmeditating con­trol group and the prospective meditators. For the reasons discussed previously, this strongly suggests that the significantly greater degree of open-

TABLE 4

ANALYSIS OF DoGMATISM SCORES

FOR NONMEDITATORS AND PROSPECTIVE MEDITATORS

SUBGROUPS COMPARED NO. OF MEAND S.D. I-TEST SUBJECTS SCORES

Students (Control) vs. 12 127.83 22.70 NS

Students (Prospective) 8 136.75 18.00

Nonstudents (Control) vs. 11 150.09 23.53 t= 1.89*

Nonstudents (Prospective) 9 132.77 15.58

Males (Control) vs. 12 142.91 31.88 NS

Males (Prospective) 7 136.14 13.95

Females (Control) vs. 11 133.63 15.39 NS

Females (Prospective) 10 133.60 18.43

• = p < .I, two-tailed test.

p<.OOI

p<.OI

p<.OOI

p<.OOI

II

80

STUDENTS NONSTUDENTS MALES FEMALES

1111111111111 ~:~~!~~:~ FIG. 2. DOGMATISM SCORES FOR EXPERIENCED MEDITATORS AND

CONTROL GROUP COMPARING SUBGROUPS: STUDENTS, NONSTU­

DENTS, MALES, AND FEMALES. The four subgroups of experienced meditators scored significantly lower than the corresponding subgroups in the control group.

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mindedness exhibited by the experienced meditators is due to the practice of Transcendental Meditation itself.

Thus, the results of this experiment suggest that Transcendental Meditation is indeed effective in facilitating open-mindedness. Furthermore, the finding of no significant differences in levels of open-mindedness between the three subgroups of experienced meditators, divided according to the length of time practicing Transcendental Medi­tation, suggests that the most substantial increase in open-mindedness occurs within the first two years of practice.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION

The findings of Hanson and Bush (1971) and Sales and Friend ( 1973) suggest that open-minded­ness is a variable personality characteristic and that it is possible to increase the degree of one's open­mindedness. The results of this study indicate that one avenue for effecting such a change is the prac­tice of Transcendental Meditation.

p<.OOI p<.OI

p<.OOI p<.OOl

80

STUDENTS NONSTUDENTS MALES FEMALES

lllllllllllll ~~~~~:~:~ FIG. 3. DOGMATISM SCORES FOR EXPERIENCED AND PROSPECTIVE

MEDITATORS COMPARING SUBGROUPS: STUDENTS, NONSTUDENTS,

MALES, AND FEMALES. The four subgroups of experienced meditators scored significantly lower than the corresponding subgroups of prospective meditators.

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MADSEN

DEVELOPMENT OF PERSONALITY: OPEN-MINDEDNESS -PAPER 152

160 NS

140 en w ~ 0 u en

~ 120 en E=: <t:: ~ 0 0 0

100

80

STUDENTS NONSTUDENTS MALES FEMALES

1111111111 g~~~~OL AG. 4. OOGMATISM SCORES FOR PROSPECTIVE MEDITATORS AND

CONTROL GROUP COMPARING SUBGROUPS: STUDENTS, NONSTU­

DENTS, MALES, AND FEMALES. No significant differences were found in any of the four subgroups.

But why is this? Accepting as valid the suggestion of this study that Transcendental Meditation can facilitate open-mindedness, how does it occur? This investigation arose from an awareness that Tran­scendental Meditation ameliorates certain crucial characteristics of closed-mindedness (externality or excessive reliance on external authority, a narrow, future-oriented time perspective, low self-esteem and feelings of personal inadequacy, and anxiety). However, the understanding of a phenomenon lies not in the recognition that it occurs, but in com­prehension of why it occurs. Such an understanding may be gleaned from a further analysis of Fromm's concept of individuation.

Fromm believes that authoritarianism (which is a form of closed-mindedness) is a reaction against the loss of primary ties. Initially, the individual is one with the world, connected to it by primary ties. These ties offer security in that they give orientation and connectedness, but they also imply a lack of individuality. When the primary ties are severed as part of the natural process of individuation, the in­dividual is alone and separated from the world. He/ she is free to develop and grow, free to express

his/her own individuality, but also free from that which once gave security and meaning. This results in a situation in which the individual (not being able to stand this separation) seeks new means of attain­ing relatedness and oneness. One means is to try and escape from the threatening freedom by attempting to find secondary ties which will replace the lost pri­mary ties. This is the means of authoritarianism and closed-mindedness.

But this is not the only means. Independence and freedom do not have to be identical with isolation and insecurity. There is another solution in which the individual exists as an independent self and yet is not isolated, but rather united with the world. This solution is to become:

... fully born, to develop one's awareness, one's reason, one's capacity to love, to such a point that one transcends one's own egocentric involvement, and arrives at a new harmony, at a new oneness with the world. (Fromm et al.,1960, p. 89)

This is the solution of emphasizing positive freedom and striving for self-realization through ''pro­ductive activity.'' Fromm ( 1955) defines productive activity as the active expression of one's inherent potentialities. Productive activity is not limited to a single sphere (for example labor), but must occur in every sphere of one's life. It is necessary for self­realization because self-realization occurs only to the extent to which the potentialities of the self are expressed.

Through productive activity leading to self­realization, one regains meaning and connectedness lost with the severance of primary ties, though this meaning and connectedness is on a new and dif­ferent level than previously. Life has an inherent tendency to grow, to expand, and to express poten­tialities. Meaning in life does not appear to be some­thing which can be discovered ''out there,'' like an apple plucked from a tree, but rather seems to be created through productive activity, through ex­pression of one's latent potentialities. Through such activity, one is reunited with the world. Thus, productive activity ends the insecurity and threat characteristic of the loss of primary ties by creating new meaning and new orientation in one's world.

Self-realization is not accomplished simply by an act of thinking, but by the realization of one's total personality and the active expression of all emotional, sensual, and intellectual potentialities. However, expression presupposes recognition, and

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it is here that Transcendental Meditation may play a crucial role in the facilitation of open-mindedness.

Through Transcendental Meditation new facets of the self enter awareness and opportunities for growth and development are revealed. This aware­ness is not just intellectual cognition, but actual direct experiencing of increasing aspects of the self, and this experiencing greatly facilitates expression and consequent realization. Thus, Transcendental Meditation may increase open-mindedness by facilitating a more positive alternative than closed­mindedness to the problem of separation and in­security. This alternative is that of self-realization.

A further aspect of the way in which Transcen­dental Meditation may increase open-mindedness is based on the premise that the essential nature of the self in its deepest aspect is eternal and unchanging. The idea of a strong universal self is present in many philosophies. This is also what Maharishi Mahesh Yogi is speaking of when he discusses the "source of creative thought." Transcendental Meditation is a process aimed at increasing contact with and experi­ence of this source. The experience of such a strong, eternal, and constant self gives one the security lost in the severance of primary ties. As discussed be­fore, Rokeach, Maslow, and Fromm all contend that individuals will hold open belief-disbelief systems insofar as possible and closed ones insofar as necessary. Part of the inherent tendency of growth and development is the expansion of understanding through open belief-disbelief systems. The forma­tion of closed systems occurs as a defense against the anxiety induced by an insecure and threatening world. To the extent that an individual experiences (actual direct intuitive experience, not simply intel­lectual cognition) a secure self which remains eter­nal and unshakable no matter what events come along in the ever-changing sphere of life, he I she would be free to hold open belief-disbelief systems.

Another characteristic of the essential self in its deepest nature is its universality. The universal self is not only eternal and constant, it also forms the underlying interconnectedness of all things. Enlight­enment (the aim of meditation) is the direct intuitive experience of the realization that at the most subtle level everything is one.

To the extent that one experiences this, one gains not only the security of an eternal and unchanging self, but orientation and connectedness with the

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entire world. While authoritarianism is the sub­mission of self into a larger whole (such as a reli­gious or political system) to gain security, the ex­perience of an eternal, constant self is the realization that one is at the same time both autonomous and intimately connected to the largest possible existing whole (that of all things). While authoritarianism is a falsified, constructed unity, self-realization is actual, complete unity. Thus, meditation can facili­tate increased degrees of open-mindedness by pro­viding the security of a strong and eternal self and the unity of experiencing the universality of this self.

A third way in which meditation may facilitate open-mindedness takes us back to the theory of constructions. Consciousness and unconsciousness may be regarded as states of awareness and unaware­ness respectively. In this vein, Fromm et al. ( 1960) identify consciousness with the reflecting intellect and unconsciousness with unreflected experience. The interface between the two consists of our con­structions of the world. They form a filter through which experience is funneled. Experience cannot enter awareness unless it can penetrate this filter, which is to a large extent socially determined. Fromm et al. ( 1960, p. 115) define enlightenment as:

... a state in which the person is completely tuned to the reality outside and inside him, a state in which he is fully aware of it and fully grasps it. He is aware of it, that is, not his brain, nor any other part of his organism, but he, the whole man. He is aware of it; not as an object over there which he grasps with his thought, but it, the flower, the dog, the man, in its or his, full reality.

This is the experience of the processes of reality directly rather than through filtering constructions. To the extent that individuals can transcend their constructions and directly grasp the world, their residual use of constructions will be much more flexible.

Thus, it would seem that the practice of Transcen­dental Meditation increases open-mindedness in three interconnected ways: by providing a means to realize the security and sense of unity lost with the severance of primary ties, by facilitating the process of self-realization as an alternative to closed­mindedness, and by allowing individuals to tran­scend their constructions of the processes of reality and to experience it directly and intuitively.

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