Mindfulness Is Associated With Lower Stress and Higher Work Engagement in a Large Sample of MOOC Participants.

In a large sample of adults from 130 countries, higher mindfulness was linked to lower perceived stress and slightly higher work engagement. Each standard deviation increase in mindfulness corresponded to a 0.52 standard deviation decrease in stress and a 0.06 standard deviation increase in engagement. After a six-week mindfulness MOOC, participants reported substantially higher mindfulness, reduced stress, and a small improvement in work engagement. The findings suggest mindfulness is a modifiable personal resource that may protect against stress and support engagement, and that online courses can deliver these benefits affordably to many people.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Objective: This study aimed to understand the associations between mindfulness, perceived stress, and work engagement in a very large sample of English-speaking adults, from 130 different countries. It also aimed to assess participants' self-reported changes following a 6-week mindfulness massive open online course (MOOC). Methods: Participants in the 6-week MOOC were invited to complete pre-post online surveys. Cross-sectional associations were assessed using univariate linear models, followed by structural equation models to test mediation pathways in baseline data (N = 16,697). Self-reported changes in mindfulness, stress and engagement following training were assessed using paired t-tests (n = 2,105). Results: Each standard deviation unit increase in mindfulness was associated with a 0.52 standard deviation unit decrease in perceived stress, and with 0.06 standard deviation unit increment in work engagement. 73% of the influence of mindfulness on engagement was direct. Following the mindfulness MOOC, participants reported higher mindfulness (d = 1.16), reduced perceived stress (d = 1.00) and a small improvement in work engagement (d = 0.29). Conclusions: Mindfulness was associated with lower perceived stress and higher work engagement in both cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses. These findings support mindfulness as a potentially protective and modifiable personal resource. The MOOC format offers a low cost, highly accessible means for extending the reach and potential benefits of mindfulness training to large numbers of people.