From the Heart: Comparing the Effects of Spiritual and Secular Meditation on Psychophysiology, Cognition, Mental Health, and Social Functioning in Healthy Adults

The number of game points (0-10) that a participant is willing to allocate to another individual as measured by the Dictator Game

Social value orientation scores as measured by the social value orientation slider measure. The higher scores represent greater prosocial preferences while lower scores represent greater self-interest preferences

The percentage of compensation fees that participants are willing to donate to a charity

A self-reported forgiveness scale assessed within a forgiveness task, ranging from 0 (Not at all) to 20 (Completely). High scores reflect a higher level of forgiveness, while lower scores indicate a lower level of forgiveness

A self-reported empathy scale assessed within a forgiveness task, ranging from 0 (Not at all) to 20 (Completely). High scores reflect a higher level of empathy, while lower scores indicate a lower level of empathy.

Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) - Perspective Taking scale. The 7-item Perspective Taking scale from IRI measures one's tendency to take the point of view of others. Participants are asked to rate how closely the statements describe them on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from A (Does not describe me well) to E (Describes me very well). The total scores range from 0 - 28. Higher scores indicate greater perspective-taking

The duration (in seconds) that a participant endures painful stimulation assessed during an endurance task

0-10 Numerical Rating Scale

Heart rate

Heart rate variability

Heart rate assessed during a forgiveness task.

Heart rate variability assessed during a forgiveness task

Reaction time assessed through a 10-minute version of Attentional Network Task (CRSD-ANT)

Reaction time assessed through a 10-minute version of Attentional Network Task (CRSD-ANT)

Reaction time assessed through a 10-minute version of Attentional Network Task (CRSD-ANT)

The Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale - 21 Items (DASS-21) is a 21-item self-report questionnaire that comprises three distinct subscales: depression, anxiety, and stress, with each containing 7 items. Participants are asked to rate the extent of the statements applied to them over the past week using a 4-point rating scale, ranging from 0 ("Did not apply to me at all") to 3 ("Applied to me very much or most of the time"). Higher scores on stress scale reflect a greater severity of the stress symptoms, whereas lower scores indicate a milder experience of these symptoms

The Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale - 21 Items (DASS-21): Depression subscale, ranging from 0 ("Did not apply to me at all") to 3 ("Applied to me very much or most of the time"). Higher scores on depression scale reflect a greater severity of the depression symptoms, whereas lower scores indicate a milder experience of these symptoms

The Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale - 21 Items (DASS-21): Anxiety subscale, ranging from 0 ("Did not apply to me at all") to 3 ("Applied to me very much or most of the time"). Higher scores on anxiety scale reflect a greater severity of the anxiety symptoms, whereas lower scores indicate a milder experience of these symptoms

Well-Being Index (WHO-5). WHO-5 is a 5-item self-report questionnaire measuring subjective wellbeing. Participants are asked to rate their feelings in the past 2 weeks using a 6-Likert scale, ranging from 0 (At no time) to 5 (All of the time). The raw score is multiplied by 4 and the final scores range from 0-100. A score of 0 indicates the lowest possible level of wellbeing, whereas a score of 100 reflects the highest possible level of wellbeing

International Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS) Short Form (I-PANAS-SF). I-PANAS-SF is a 10-item self-report questionnaire measuring 5 items of positive affect and 5 items of negative affect. Participants are asked to rate their general feelings and emotions on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (Never) to 5 (Always). Higher scores indicate a greater level of positive affect, and lower scores represent a lower level of negative affect

5-item Smiley Face Likert scale within the meditation app. The scale assesses participants' feelings before and after their daily contemplative / mindfulness practices. Participants are asked to choose one out of the five emoji faces on the scale to indicate their current feelings ranging from a very sad face to a very happy face

The Daily Spiritual Experience Scale (DSES). DSES is a 16-item self-report questionnaire. Participants are asked to rate their daily spiritual experiences. 15 items are rated on a 6-point Likert scale from 1 (Many times a day) to 6 (Never or almost never) and 1 item is rated on a 4-point Likert scale from 1 (Not close) to 4 (As close as possible). Higher scores indicate greater spirituality

Inclusion-of-God-in-the-self scale (adapted from Inclusions of Others in Self scale). The scale consists of 7 pairs of pictorial circles with one circle of each pair being labelled as Self, and the other circle being labelled as God. Participants are asked to choose 1 of the 7 pairs of circles that best describes their relationship with God. The pairs of circles have different degrees of overlap, ranging from the 1st pair (no overlap) to the 7th pair (most overlap). The greater the overlap in the circles corresponds to a closer relationship with God

Duke University Religiosity Index (DUREL). DUREL is a 5-item self-report questionnaire measuring three major dimensions of religious involvement with three subscales: organizational religious activity (ORA), non-organizational religious activity (NORA), and intrinsic religiosity (IR). Participants are asked to rate their religious involvement (ORA and NORA) on a 6-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (Never) to 6 (More than once a week/day) and rate their religious beliefs or experience (IR) on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (Definitely not true) to 5 (Definitely true of me). Higher scores indicate a higher religiosity

Credibility/Expectancy questionnaire. This is a 4-item self-report questionnaire that assesses participants' beliefs about the efficacy and credibility of the contemplative practices on a 9-point Likert scale from 1 (Not at all) to 9 (Very much). Higher scores indicate greater positive expectancies

The Inclusion-of-Other-in-the-Self scale assessed within the forgiveness task. It is a pictorial scale consists of seven pairs of circles, with one circle of each pair labelled as Self and the other circle labelled as Other. Participants are asked to choose the pair of circles that best describes their relationship with the offender. The pairs of circles have different degrees of overlap, ranging from the 1st pair (no overlap) to the 7th pair (most overlap). The greater the overlap in the circles, the closer the relationship with the offender

Self-report assessment

Self-report assessment

Self-report assessment

Self-report assessment

Self-report assessment

Self-report assessment

Self-report assessment

Self-report unpleasant events and harm questionnaire. The questionnaire is a self-report measure to assess the unpleasant events and harm in contemplative or mindfulness practices. It includes Likert ratings and free-text questions about unpleasant feelings and the harm that participants may have experienced during the contemplation or mindfulness practices

Self-report assessment about participant's experiences with the App-based exercises

Self-report assessment about frequency of participant's practices after the end of the 8-week intervention

Key themes that emerge from participants' diaries for their reflection on their experiences of the daily meditative practices

Key themes that emerge from participants' daily meditative experiences assessed within the App