Meditative State Scale (MSS)

Abstract

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The 12-item Meditative State Scale (MSS) is a self-report instrument aimed to evaluate meditative states from an inclusive approach that respects the foundational pillars in which meditation practices were grounded and integrates them with recent neuroscientific and psychological findings. The scale evaluates the state reached during a specific meditation session. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were conducted on the MMS, supporting a three-factor structure encompassing a first factor of Transcendence, a second factor of Difficulties, and a third factor of Mental Quietening. Measurement invariance of the MSS across groups of naïve and experienced meditators were also tested, revealing configural and metric invariance across beginners and experienced meditators. A selection of additional instruments was used to further assess its convergent and discriminant validity, revealing good internal reliability and construct validity. In addition, the link between reported experiential features of meditative states as measured by the MSS and their neural correlates in terms of their EEG activity (gamma frequency activity) were assessed, revealing associations between MSS scores and changes in EEG gamma activity in parietal and occipital areas. Use of the MSS may contribute to a more grounded and rigorous application of meditation-based programs in research, educational, and clinical contexts, and may contribute to a better understanding of the complex mechanisms that are involved in meditation practice.