Could Meditation for Kids Reduce Violence?

By Bhavan Kumar

Many people have begun to wonder how we can reduce violence among young people. Is there a way to teach kids, especially those who are most at-risk for developing violent tendencies, how to control their outbreaks of negative emotion? The answer is a resounding yes!

Science has long confirmed the benefits of meditation, especially in those with high blood pressure or anxiety. Over the last 10 to 20 years, research has also begun to analyze how meditation affects behavior. One study conducted by Elizabeth Monk-Turner that was published in The Social Science Journal in 2003, for example, notes that college students who meditate have lower instances of drug use and are not as sensitive to negative feedback from others. In June 2011, an article entitled "Meditation Research: The State of the Art in Correctional Settings" was published in the International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology; indicating that inmates who were introduced to meditation benefited from decreased recidivism and substance abuse rates while also reporting greater psychological well-being.

As far as the practice relates to young people and violence, the research is also clear. As far back as 1997, M.W. Ashford reports in "Preventing Violence, Preventing War" that meditation programs in schools have been successful at reducing behavior problems, disciplinary infractions, and ultimately, violence. So how does it work?

Meditation and Violence

Meditation is the art of awareness. Many people relate it to some sort of religious experience akin to prayer, but advocates of meditation techniques like Transcendental Meditation liken it to a spiritual experience divorced from faith or dogma or even God. Meditation attempts to transcend or move beyond thought to a place of quiet awareness, which is restful to both body and mind. If you have ever tried to quiet your mind before, you will know how seemingly impossible it is to turn off the fountain of thoughts that seem to spout from nowhere. This is why meditation takes practice and consistency.

The practice of meditation offers benefits in itself. First, the mental struggle involved offers practitioners the discipline of both mind and emotions. Second, it teaches the mind to focus without constant external stimuli, something that this modern age makes almost impossible to do.

It may already be clear how these benefits of meditation help reduce violence in kids. First, meditation equips youth with a quiet place inside their own minds to go when problems or issues that feel overwhelming arise. Second, the practice of meditation relaxes the body while quieting the body, allowing kids to feel happier and more in control of themselves.

With high rates of juvenile violence still such a problem, engaging more kids in the practice of meditation might actually change lives by creating a positive atmosphere for youth to grow and learn and, eventually, achieve awareness.

© Copyright 2013 – Aura Wellness Center – Publications Division

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