Landrith and Dillbeck Quality of Life: Growth of Coherence in Society

This study tested the prediction that increased coherence of collective consciousness would be found in cities upon reaching the threshold level of one percent participation in the Transcendental Meditation (TM) program, and that this increased coherence would be reflected in decreased rates of suicides and auto accidents. The sample consisted of an experimental group of cities which reached the one-percent level of TM program participation in 1972 and a control group of cities each matched for an experimental city on population, college population, and geographic region. Prior to the intervention period, the two groups of cities did not differ significantly on rates of suicides or auto accidents. During the intervention period (1972 to 1977), the experimental cities displayed a decrease in rates of both suicides and auto accidents; this decrease was highly significant after controlling statistically for changes in the major demographic variable on which the two groups of cities differed. The results of this study indicate that the Transcendental Meditation program is a practical means for improving the quality of life in society as a whole and for reducing previously intractable social problems.