Meditación en Conciencia Plena: Una Nueva Aproximación para Reducir el Prejuicio

Abstract

Introduction: The multicultural coexistence is one of the most important issues in the new educational challenges. In the face of the limitations of the frameworks of prejudice reduction, this problem begins to be addressed from the Cognitive and Behavioural Therapies based on mindfulness and acceptation. This study analyses the influence of a psycho-educational program of training in mindfulness on prejudicial attitude and the discrimination perceived towards Moroccans in a sample of 46 high school students of 4th Grade. Method: The Spanish students who participated in the study were randomly assigned to an experimental group (N = 23), who was involved in a meditation program, and a control group (N = 23). The study presents a cuasiexperimental design with three phases: pretest, postest, and follow-up. The Mann-Whitney test was used to assess whether there were significant differences between the control and the experimental group, whereas the Wilcoxon test was used in order to assess whether there were significant differences among different phases of the study, in both groups. Results: Results showed a decrease of two components of prejudice attitude towards Moroccans in the experimental group (affective and connative) compared to the control group. Experimental group showed less negative emotions and less preferred social distance towards Moroccans, as well as more positive emotions, and more perceived discrimination towards this ethnic group when they finished the meditation program, compared to the pre-test levels. These effects were relatively permanent. Discussion and Conclusion: These results show that the psychological frameworks of new generation based on mindfulness can represent an useful and alternative tool in order to decrease prejudice (especially their affective components) towards ethnic minorities. Moreover, this approach seems to be more adapted to teenagers and to new implicit prejudice. © Education & Psychology I+D+i and Editorial EOS (Spain).