{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,24]],"date-time":"2026-04-24T14:59:28Z","timestamp":1777042768209,"version":"3.51.4"},"reference-count":54,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,24]],"date-time":"2026-04-24T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1776988800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Public Health"],"abstract":"<jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Introduction<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>The present study was designed to evaluate the effect of regular \u0101n\u0101p\u0101na practice, a beginning step of vipassan\u0101 meditation, in the framework of the MITRA program, over one academic year, on attention and mental well-being among secondary school students.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Materials and methods<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      Two classes of 8th-grade students from a single school were treated either as experimental group (EG:\n                      <jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u202f=\u202f44) or control group (CG:\n                      <jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u202f=\u202f45), as suggested by school authorities. MITRA trainers conducted \u0101n\u0101p\u0101na training for students and their class teachers. After this, class teachers conducted regular \u0101n\u0101p\u0101na practice for students for 10\u202fmin on every school day using recorded instructions. EG practiced \u0101n\u0101p\u0101na for the entire academic year, whereas CG was waitlisted for the first semester. Both groups were assessed before, mid, and after completion of the program to track changes over time. For students, quantitative measures to assess attention were the figure cancelation task and the digit symbol substitution task, whereas to assess mental well-being, the psychological well-being scale and the NIMHANS sentence completion test (NSCT) were used. Qualitative measures were focus group discussions of students and individual interviews of teachers. Data from parents were taken using a parent rating scale and through individual interviews. A one-way multivariate analysis of variance was conducted to examine and compare changes in the EG and CG over time with respect to the study variables. A deductive approach was used to analyze qualitative data.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Results<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      At the interim assessment level, gain in adjustment with self, as assessed by NSCT, in EG students was significantly higher than in CG students (Cohen\u2019s\n                      <jats:italic>d<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u202f=\u202f0.43). There was a significant improvement in sustained attention as assessed by Figure cancelation task of EG students compared to CG by the end of the program (\n                      <jats:italic>d<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u202f=\u202f0.61). These findings were supported by qualitative data from students, teachers and parents. Qualitative findings clustered around better focus on studies, emotional regulation, positive relations with others, and strategic use of \u0101n\u0101p\u0101na to deal with stress.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Discussion<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Based on the present mixed-methods\u2019 findings, it is concluded that regular \u0101n\u0101p\u0101na practice can be useful for educational activities among school-going students (early adolescents). Suggestions are made for better utilization of the salutogenic potential of the MITRA program.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.3389\/fpubh.2026.1772248","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,24]],"date-time":"2026-04-24T13:13:42Z","timestamp":1777036422000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Effect of \u0101n\u0101p\u0101na meditation on attention and mental well-being in secondary school students: a mixed-methods evaluation"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"14","author":[{"given":"Neelam","family":"Oswal","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Vipassan\u0101 Research Institute","place":["Mumbai, India"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Pranita","family":"Jagtap","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Jnana Prabodhini\u2019s Institute of Psychology","place":["Pune, India"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Pradnya","family":"Dasarwar","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Vipassan\u0101 Research Institute","place":["Mumbai, India"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,24]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref1","article-title":"Introducing \u0101n\u0101p\u0101na meditation in all primary and secondary schools of the state (government circular)","year":"2011"},{"key":"ref2","article-title":"About MITRA Upakram","year":""},{"key":"ref3","article-title":"Adolescent Health","year":""},{"key":"ref4","volume-title":"Guidelines on Mental Health Promotive and Preventive Interventions for Adolescents: Helping Adolescents Thrive","year":"2020"},{"key":"ref5","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"S49","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jadohealth.2016.06.020","article-title":"Interventions for adolescent mental health: an overview of systematic reviews","volume":"59","author":"Das","year":"2016","journal-title":"J Adolesc Health"},{"key":"ref6","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"11","DOI":"10.1093\/heapro\/11.1.11","article-title":"The salutogenic model as a theory to guide health promotion","volume":"11","author":"Antonovsky","year":"1996","journal-title":"Health Promot Int"},{"key":"ref7","first-page":"33","volume-title":"Sayagyi U Ba Khin Journal: a Collection Commemorating the Teaching of Sayagyi U Ba Khin","author":"Goenka","year":"1991"},{"key":"ref8","volume-title":"The Cambridge Handbook of Consciousness","author":"Lutz","year":"2007"},{"key":"ref9","article-title":"Mitra App [mobile application]","year":"2024"},{"key":"ref10","volume-title":"Full Catastrophe living: using the Wisdom of your body and mind to face Stress, pain, and Illness","author":"Kabat-Zinn","year":"2013"},{"key":"ref11","volume-title":"Mindfulness and Psychotherapy","author":"Germer","year":"2013"},{"key":"ref12","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1220","DOI":"10.3390\/ejihpe12080085","article-title":"Systematic review of mindfulness-based interventions in child-adolescent population: a developmental perspective","volume":"12","author":"Porter","year":"2022","journal-title":"Eur J Investig Health Psychol Educ"},{"key":"ref13","volume-title":"The Discourse Summaries","author":"Goenka","year":"1987"},{"key":"ref14","volume-title":"Translator. 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