Abstract
The ancient practice of chanting typically takes place within a community as a part of a live ceremony or ritual. Research suggests that chanting leads to improved mood, reduced stress, and increased wellbeing. During the global pandemic, many chanting practices were moved online in order to adhere to social distancing recommendations. However, it is unclear whether the benefits of live chanting occur when practiced in an online format. The present study assessed the effects of a 10-min online chanting session on stress, mood, and connectedness, carried out either in a group or individually. The study employed a 2 (chanting vs. control) × 2 (group vs. individual) between-subjects design. Participants (N = 117) were pseudo-randomly allocated across the four conditions. Before and after participation, individuals completed the Spielberg’s State Trait Anxiety Inventory, the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule, the Social Connectedness Scale and Aron’s Inclusion of Self in Other Scale. Online chanting led to a significant reduction in stress and an increase in positive affect when compared to the online control task. Participants who took part in group chanting also felt more connected to members of their chanting group than participants in the control group. However, feelings of general connectedness to all people remained similar across conditions. The investigation provides evidence that online chanting may be a useful psychosocial intervention, whether practiced individually or in a group.
Highlights
Chanting is an ancient form of contemplative practice found in many cultures across the world
Chanting online resulted in a significant decrease in stress, with similar decreases observed for both group and individual chanting
Chanting in a group did not result in changes to general feelings of connectedness to all people
Summary
Chanting is an ancient form of contemplative practice found in many cultures across the world. Group rituals are thought to enhance social bonding (Fischer and Xygalatas, 2014; Hobson et al, 2018), especially when individuals in the group become synchronized, as through music-supported movement Perry et al (2016) noted that group chanting increased feelings of altruism while enhancing positive mood and reducing negative mood These findings are compatible with theories suggesting that social support can promote intrapersonal emotion regulation (Thayer et al, 1994). Would be greater when chanting in a group than when chanting individually
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