How Transcendental Meditation Enhances Productivity and Job Satisfaction

Based on the findings of an article published in the Academy of Management Journal, Transcendental Meditation® enhances productivity by providing a “constant value stress release program” for practitioners.

The author of the 1974 article suggests that high-level employees, who tend to have the largest amounts of stress, would gain the most value from the productivity benefits of the Transcendental Meditation technique.

Therefore, productivity can be seen as a by-product or a positive side effect of the Transcendental Meditation technique. The author mentions that the following benefits are widely attributed to Transcendental Meditation:

• Releases tension and anxiety
• Increases creativity
• Helps practitioners cope more effectively with the daily activities of life
• Lessens dependence on drugs

The evidence that these initial benefits of Transcendental Meditation lead to the later benefits of productivity can be observed through analysing their opposites. An excess of tension and anxiety, a lack of creativity, an inability to effectively cope with life’s daily activities, and a dependence on drugs can all individually lead to lower productivity. 

Additionally, the results of the study featured in the article support the conclusion that Transcendental Meditation does indeed enhance productivity. The study involved 42 practitioners of Transcendental Meditation and 27 of their co-workers as the control group. The practitioners reported that they had increased job satisfaction, better performance, less desire to leave their jobs (turnover propensity), and better workplace relationships.

The results of the 1974 study were further supported by that of a 1993 study. Compared to controls, Transcendental Meditation practitioners improved significantly on multiple measures of employee development such as:

• Decreased job tension, anxiety, and use of cigarettes and hard liqueur
• Enhanced job satisfaction, employee effectiveness, and work relationships

According to the authors of the 1993 study, the three factors underlying these improvements are occupational coherence, psychological settledness, and job-life satisfaction. Through the factors identified 1993 study, it can be possible to conclude that Transcendental Meditation enhances productivity by:

• Helping practitioners make sense and come to terms with the demands and characteristics of their occupation
• Making practitioners feel more at ease and psychologically secure
• Facilitating greater contentment with what one has in life and in work

In essence, Transcendental Meditation helps practitioners be more productive by training them to make the most out of what has been given to them. This acceptance and understanding of occupational and personal challenges is what enables practitioners to fully realise and maximise their potential at work as well as in other areas of their lives.