Some Evidence That the Transcendental Meditation Program Increases Intelligence and Reduces Neuroticism as Measured by Psychological Tests

A one-year longitudinal study of changes in neuroticism and intelligence, as measured by a figural reasoning test, was conducted with 14 high school students who learned the Transcendental Meditation technique and six controls. Students who practiced Transcendental Meditation regularly (N = 7) decreased significantly in neuroticism (p <.OJ), while irregular meditators (N = 7) and nonmeditating controls (N = 6) did not. All groups increased in intelligence, but the regular meditators increased significantly more than the nonmeditators (p = .032). Also, the regular meditators showed a greater increase in intelligence than the irregular meditators. However, the difference in the increases only approached significance (p = .09). These results suggest that the Transcendental Meditation technique brings about significant reductions in neuroticism and significant increases in intelligence over a period of one year. This implies that the Transcendental Meditation program considerably strengthens an individual's self-concept and ability to comprehend and adapt to new situations.