Effect of mind/body interventions on levels of anxiety, stress and depression among future primary school teacher: a controlled study

The present study compares the effects of three mind/body programs on stress, anxiety and depression among a sampling of university students. These three programs, which are currently experiencing great popularity, are Mindfulness, Tai Chi and Yoga. 282 undergraduate teaching students participated in this research. They were chosen as candidates because, in the future, as working professionals they will be exposed to high levels of stress and, at present, as students they suffer high levels of anxiety during exam periods. 85 students were randomly assigned to a Yoga group, 68 to a Tai Chi group, 84 to a Mindfulness group, and 45 comprised the control group. Tai Chi and Yoga significantly reduced anxiety, while Mindfulness had the same effect on stress; nevertheless, all three programs proved effective in the reduction of psychological malaise in comparison with the control group. In terms of general mental health, Mindfulness produced greater overall effects. The control group did not experience any significant changes in relation to the variables evaluated, and the levels of said variables even worsened according to the post-test conducted prior to the exam period.