A Mindfulness Based Intervention to Enhance University Student Wellbeing in Saudi Arabia

Authors

  • Saddigha Al-Ghalib Effat University
  • Afeefah Salim Effat University

Keywords:

mindfulness, mindfulness based stress reduction (MBSR), life satisfaction, well-being, meditation, Saudi Arabia

Abstract

The Mindful Jeddah Training Program (MJTP) is a culturally and religiously inclusive three-week mindfulness-training pilot program designed to help university student’s deal with everyday stress, anxiety and depression while increasing levels of life satisfaction. A quasi-experiment was designed to compare the effectiveness of the MJTP with a control condition. Twenty-six female participants from a private university in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia were randomly assigned to treatment or control group participation. A comparison of group means showed that the MJTP group had marginally decreased levels of stress, anxiety, depression and increased mental well-being and mindfulness. Yet, a dependent t-test showed that the MJTP group had statistical significantly increased levels of life satisfaction as well. An independent t-test between the two groups revealed no significant results. The control group showed decreased mental well-being while slightly increasing depression and anxiety which reinforces the idea that analyzing and over-thinking are detrimental to psychological health. The MJTP can be an effective way to meet well-being aims in Saudi Arabia and in a manner that is culturally and religiously congruent.

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Published

2018-12-23

How to Cite

Al-Ghalib, S., & Salim, A. (2018). A Mindfulness Based Intervention to Enhance University Student Wellbeing in Saudi Arabia. Middle East Journal of Positive Psychology, 4, 142–157. Retrieved from https://www.middleeastjournalofpositivepsychology.org/index.php/mejpp/article/view/70