Investigating The Field Effects Of Consciousness On Socioeconomic Indices

Main Category: Psychology / Psychiatry
Also Included In: Anxiety / Stress
Article Date: 05 Nov 2006 - 7:00 PDT


Can the large collective practice of a scientifically documented stress-reducing meditation technique positively impact a larger population through the "field effects of consciousness"--reducing societal stress, crime, and violence, and improving economic and climatic trends?

Yes, according to a rigorous, controlled econometric analysis of the first 100 days of a $12 million scientific demonstration project to monitor the effects of 1200 advanced Transcendental Meditation practitioners on U.S. quality of life indicators.

The research shows that since the project began on July 23, the Dow Jones Industrial Index and the S&P 500 have posted total gains of approximately 12%, and the Nasdaq has climbed nearly 18%--with the Dow repeatedly hitting all-time record levels, the S&P reaching a 5.5-year high, and the Nasdaq climbing to a five-year high.

"The group of advanced meditators are 'creating coherence in national consciousness'--generating confidence, optimism, and positivity in the national mood," said quantum physicist John Hagelin, Ph.D., the demonstration project director. "Sociologists as well as economists are aware that the markets are an extremely nimble and sensitive barometer of the collective consciousness."

The results were presented during a news conference on Wednesday, November 1, at 10 a.m. CST at Maharishi University of Management in Fairfield, Iowa.

Panelists included

* John Hagelin, Ph.D., director of the Institute of Science, Technology and Public Policy;

* Ken Cavanaugh, Ph.D., professor of applied statistics and senior research scientist at the Institute of Science, Technology and Public Policy;

* Fred Travis, Ph.D., director of the Center for Brain, Consciousness, and Cognition;

* Robert Schneider, M.D., F.A.C.C., director of the NIH-funded Institute of Natural Medicine and Prevention

Dr. Hagelin also lodged a new set of predictions for the demonstration project, since an additional 500 advanced meditation experts from India are now joining the group to further intensify its positive impact. The predictions include a continued bullish rise in the stock market, a reduction in violent crime rates nationwide, and progress towards peace in the Middle East and North Korea.

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The new research on the effects of collective meditation on society follows 23 previous studies published in peer-reviewed journals over the past 25 years. (See http://www.permanentpeace.org/.)

The benefits of the Transcendental Meditation program for individual health are scientifically well documented. The National Institutes of Health has provided $25 million to study the effects of Transcendental Meditation practice on reducing stress and preventing and treating cardiovascular disease. The research been published in such peer-reviewed journals as the American Medical Association's Archives of Internal Medicine and the American Heart Association's Hypertension.

Contact: Ken Chawkin
Maharishi University of Management

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