Table 1 Frequency of mental distress in subgroups of the sample at the start of the TM course and GHQ subclass scores before and after the course and levels of significance for improvement of test scores
From: Effects of Transcendental Meditation on mental health: a before-after study
| Subgroup n (%) | GHQ ≥ 22 n (%) | Mean GHQ subclass scores (before – after) | GHQ-28 score | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Somatisation | Anxiety | Social Dysfunction | Depression | ||||
| Total | 80 | 31 (39%) |
(6.2 – 4.8) p* < 0.001 |
(6.6 – 4.7) p < 0.001 |
(9.2 – 9.4) p = 0.979 |
(3.0 – 2.0) p = 0.152 |
(25.1 – 21.3) p < 0.001 |
| Age Group | |||||||
| 20 – 29 | 35 (44%) | 13 (37%) |
(6.1 – 4.9) p < 0.001 |
(6.8 – 5.5) p < 0.001 |
(8.9 – 8.9) p = 0.979 |
(3.9 – 3.0) p = 0.152 |
(25.7 – 22.3) p < 0.001 |
| 30 – 39 | 25 (31%) | 10 (40%) |
(7.5 – 5.5) p = 0.019 |
(7.7 – 4.7) p = 0.006 |
(8.5 – 10.1) p = 0.352 |
(3.5 – 1.9) p = 0.106 |
(27.2 – 22.4) p = 0.028 |
| ≥ 40 | 20 (25%) | 8 (40%) |
(6.0 – 4.6) p = 0.023 |
(6.6 – 3.8) p = 0.036 |
(10.4 – 9.8) p = 0.292 |
(1.8 – 1.5) p = 0.733 |
(24.9 – 19.7) p = 0.022 |
| Gender | |||||||
| Male | 24 (30%) | 7 (29%) |
(5.6 – 3.8) p = 0.005 |
(5.3 – 3.7) p = 0.029 |
(8.5 – 9.2) p = 0.667 |
(2.4 – 1.5) p = 0.094 |
(21.9 – 18.3) p = 0.01 |
| Female | 56 (70%) | 24 (43%) |
(6.5 – 5.3) p = 0.018 |
(7.2 – 5.1) p < 0.001 |
(9.5 – 9.6) p = 0.839 |
(3.3 – 2.7) p = 0.517 |
(26.4 – 22.7) p = 0.003 |
| Marital Status | |||||||
| Married | 44 (55%) | 17 (39%) |
(5.8 – 4.7) p = 0.025 |
(6.1 – 4.1) p = 0.01 |
(9.3 – 9.8) p = 0.793 |
(2.7 – 2.0) p = 0.253 |
(23.8 – 20.6) p = 0.024 |
| Unmarried | 36 (45%) | 14 (39%) |
(6.8 – 5.1) p = 0.006 |
(7.3 – 5.5) p = 0.003 |
(9.1 – 9.0) p = 0.742 |
(3.5 – 2.7) p = 0.350 |
(26.6 – 22.3) p < 0.001 |