Maharishi Effect:
Papers and
Presentations

Citation

Experimental Design

Findings

Consciousness and the quality of economic life: Empirical research on the macroeconomic effects of the collective practice of Maharishi's Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi program.
Reference: Proceedings of the Midwest Management Society (Chicago, IL: Midwest Management Society), 183–190.
Cavanaugh, K. L., King, K. D., & Titus, B. D. (1989).

The impact of the MIU group TM-Sidhi program on the twin "miseries" of inflation and unemployment was studied using multiple input time series analysis on US economic data over the period 1979 to 1988. Strong statistical evidence for a causal role is presented.

• Increases in the size of a TM-Sidhi group led to measurably improved economic conditions.

• Inflation and unemployment together fell 4.65 points, about 40% (p<.01).

• Group TM-Sidhi practice had a more significant impact on unemployment and inflation than either of the usual explanations, monetary base growth or supply side shocks.

The effect of the Taste of Utopia Assembly on the World Index of international stock prices.
Reference: Scientific Research on Maharishi's Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi Programme: Collected Papers, (Vol. 4, pp. 2715–2729).
Cavanaugh, K. L., Orme-Johnson, D. W., & Gelderloos, P. (1989).

The "World index" of 1,100 securities from 19 countries was studied using transfer-function analysis for the impact of a group of 7,000 TM-Sidhi experts gathered for three weeks.

• World stock market index rose at an annualized percentage rate of 85%, while in the three-week periods both preceding and following the assembly, the rate was -1% (p<.005).

The Maharishi Technology of the Unified Field and improved quality of life in the United States: A study of the First World Peace Assembly, Amherst, Massachusetts, 1979.
Reference: Scientific Research on Maharishi's Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi Programme: Collected Papers, (Vol. 4, pp. 2549–2563).
Davies, J. L., & Alexander, C. N. (1989).

A TM-Sidhi group of 2,500 assembled in Massachusetts for 6 weeks in 1979. Predicted in advance, and compared with trends over the same period for the previous 8 years in Massachusetts, and the US as a whole, the Maharishi Effect was studied using t-tests. Time series analysis was used for the Standard & Poor's Composite Index of stock prices.

• Traffic fatalities in US fell 6.5% (p<.0001).

• Violent crime in US fell 3.4% (p<.02).

• Air transport fatalities in US fell 20.8% (p<.05).

• US fatal accidents fell 4.0%.

• Standard & Poor's Index rose 5.0% (p<.035), and Dow Jones rose 4.8%.

• Traffic fatalities in Mass. fell 19% (p<.05).

• Violent crime in Mass. fell 10% (p<.00001).

• Mass. air traffic fatalities dropped 83% (p<.001).

Alleviating political violence through enhancing coherence in collective consciousness: Impact assessment analysis of the Lebanon war.
Reference: Paper presented at the 85th Annual Meeting of the American Political Science Association., Atlanta, GA.
Davies, J. L., & Alexander, C. N. (1989).

The Lebanon war was the most extreme and violent of the more than 60 conflicts world-wide in years 1983–1985. For 11% of this period, TM-Sidhi groups of size sufficient to impact the war were assembled on 7 separate occasions at varying distances from the country. The combined significance of all indicators together is p<9x10^-20.

• War intensity fell 48%, fatalities fell 71%, injuries fell 68%, cooperation rose 66%.

• Effects of temperature, holidays, the possibility that courses were initiated upon hearing some good news, existing trends in Lebanon, media coverage, selected pruning of data or period, measurement artifact, bias, coincidence, seasonal cycles, and behavioral interaction between course and nation are all controlled for in the study.

The Transcendental Meditation program and a compound probability model as predictor of crime rate change.
Reference: Paper presented at the Midwest Sociological Society Meeting, Omaha, Nebraska.
Dillbeck M. C. (1978).

Dillbeck creates a statistical model for crime rates and validates it on 108 US cities, and then the US as a whole. He then applies the model to Kansas City where 4 of 23 metropolitan cities reached 1% TM during the years 1972–1975. Linear regression analysis was used to predict immediate future crime trends based on past performance, and comparing the 1% cities to the remaining cities.

• Crime rate dropped 17.3% the year the cities reached 1% TM while crime in the remaining (control) cities rose by 12.8% (p<.001).

• Crime rate remained 14.5% less in following years in 1% cities, compared to an 11.6% increase in remaining (control) cities (p<.001).

The effect of the group dynamics of consciousness on society: Reduced crime in the union territory of Delhi, India.
Reference: Scientific Research on Maharishi's Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi Programme: Collected Papers, (Vol. 4, pp. 2583–2588).
Dillbeck, M. C., Cavanaugh, K. L., & Berg, W. P. (1989).

3,000 TM-Sidhi experts assembled in New Delhi, India November 1980. Group size diminished in following months through March 1981 when the threshold number was no longer exceeded. Time series analysis was used to study the intervention using daily crime data.

• Crime decreased 11% compared to previous trends (p<.0001).