Page 213 - Demo

21140%30%20%10%0%-10%40%30%20%10%0%-10%40%30%20%10%0%-10%Change afterthree monthsfor non-meditatorsChange after the first threemonths of the TranscendentalMeditation programp < .001* p < .001* p < .001*CHANGE (percent)Change in Field IndependenceBroader Comprehension and Improved Ability to Focus Attention*Analysis of variance %u2014 meditation efflectTEST 1 - Increased abilityto focus attention (autokinetic efflect latency)TEST 2 - Increased stabilityof spatial orientation (Rodand-Frame Test)TEST 3 - Broader comprehension, increased resistance to distraction(Embedded-Figures Test)tm-028In this study three tests were administered that directly measure fi eld independence, the ability to focus attention on specifi c objects without being dis tracted by the environment of the objects. Subjects changed signifi cantly in the direction of increased fi eld independence after practicing the Transcendental Medita tion (TM) technique for three months, compared with a non-meditating control group.The latency of the autokinetic effect measures the time it takes a subject to perceive movement of a spot of light (Test 1 in the chart above); the Rod-and-Frame Test measures the ability to orient a rod to true vertical position against a tilted frame (Test 2); and the Embedded-Figures Test measures the ability to perceive simple fi gures embedded in a complex background (Test 3).These measures indicate the development of fi eld independence, the ability to analytically perceive an item embedded in a complex context. Researchers have found that persons with greater fi eld independence have the following characteristics: greater ability to assimilate and structure experience; greater organization of mind and cognitive clarity; improved memory; greater creative expression; stable internal frame of reference; stable standards, attitudes, judgment, and sentiments without continuous reference to external standards; differentiation of inner and outer; autonomic stability; more assertiveness. All these characteristics are indications of improved neurological organization and, consequently, more evolved consciousness. This improvement in TMers is all the more remarkable because it was previously believed that these basic perceptual abilities do not improve beyond early adulthood.BROADER COMPREHENSION & IMPROVEDABILITY TO FOCUS ATTENTIONReferences: Pelletier, K. R. (1977). The effects of the Transcendental Meditation program on perceptual style: Increased fi eld independence. In D. W. Orme-Johnson & J. T. Farrow (Eds.), Scientifi c research on the Transcendental Meditation program: Collected papers (Vol. 1, pp. 337%u2013345). Maharishi European Research University Press.Pelletier, K. R. (1974). Infl uence of Transcendental Meditation upon autokinetic perception. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 39, 1031%u20131034.