Loving-kindness meditation: A tool for increasing social connectedness

Social connectedness is a fundamental human need. Growing evidence suggests that feeling socially connected is associated with important mental and physical health benefits. The goal of the present studies was to investigate whether social connectedness can be internally self-generated using loving-kindness meditation (LKM), a Buddhist technique. Studies 1 and 2 compared LKM to a matched neutral control condition (NEU) on implicit and explicit social connectedness measures. Both studies found that LKM increased implicit and explicit connectedness to the target of meditation whereas there were no effects for NEU. Studies 3 and 4 tested the effects of traditional, non-targeted LKM on generalized (i.e. non-targeted) explicit social connectedness. Both studies found that traditional LKM increased generalized explicit social connectedness. In addition, Study 4 compared the effects of LKM to a matched pride mood induction (PMI) to assess whether LKM's effects were explained by positive mood. LKM led to increased social connectedness whereas PMI did not. Study 5 tested the effect of traditional LKM on both male and female participants with new social connectedness measures: self-focus and perception of others as familiar and attractive. The results indicated that LKM decreased participant's self-focus and increased their perception of others as familiar and attractive. Finally, Study 6 assessed whether states and traits related to social connectedness moderate the effects of LKM. Results suggest that LKM is a useful tool for increasing social connectedness, particularly for people with interpersonal vulnerabilities such as rejection sensitivity.