Reference:
Shore, A. G. (2004). Long term effects of energetic healing on symptoms of psychological depression and self-perceived stress. Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine, 10(3), 42-48.
Objectives:
To examine the short and long-term psychological effects of energetic healing (Reiki) for up to one year following treatment.
Hypotheses:
(a) Reiki reduces negative symptoms on the psychological measures of distress in treated participants.
(b) Reiki provides a sustained long-term reduction of depressive symptoms and self-perceived stress in treated participants, as compared with controls.
(c) The control group participants would also exhibit a significant reduction in depressive symptoms and stress when they receive their Reiki treatment after the final post-treatment data collection is completed.
Methods:
The symptoms of psychological depression and self-perceived stress were measured using three scales:
1) Beck Depression Inventory
2) Beck Hopelessness Scale
3) Perceived Stress Scale
Pre and post scores were compared and analyzed using the 3 x 3 factorial MANOVA.
Forty-six prescreened participants who were in need of treatment for symptoms of depression and stress were randomly assigned to one of three groups:
1) Hands-on Reiki
2) Distance (non-touch) Reiki
3) or Distance Reiki placebo
All participants remained blind to their treatment condition at the outset of the investigation.
For the purpose of reducing Hawthorn and expectancy confounds, deception was also implemented later.
Participants in the hands-on Reiki condition believed they were receiving mock-Reiki, and participants in the placebo distance Reiki condition believed they were receiving distance Reiki, thereby reducing the potential for expectancy and placebo effects.
Each participant received a 1 to 1.5 hour Reiki treatment each week for six weeks.
Participants completed questionnaires at the beginning and end of six weeks, and again after one year.
Results:
Pretest data collected prior to treatment demonstrated no preexisting significant differences among groups.
Upon completion of treatment at six weeks, there was a significant reduction in symptoms of psychological distress in treatment groups as compared with controls, and these differences continued to be present 1 year later.
The Distance Reiki Placebo Group:
Despite their belief that they were receiving distance Reiki, there was no significant reduction in the scores for all measures for the placebo group (not until they received treatment after the one year follow up).
After the one year follow up data collection was completed:
The control group received six hours of hands-on or distance Reiki treatment.
The post-test results demonstrated a significant reduction of stress, hopelessness, and depressive symptoms in control subjects after they received Reiki treatment.
Conclusion:
The results demonstrate the validity of the following hypotheses:
(a) Reiki can effect a significant reduction of depressive symptoms, hopelessness, and stress for individuals receiving treatment, and these results are maintained up to 1 year after completion of treatment.
(b) Reiki can effect a long-term reduction in depressive symptoms, hopelessness, and stress scores in treated participants when compared with control groups.
(c) The control group participants exhibited a significant reduction in depressive symptoms and stress upon completion of 6 weekly Reiki treatments.
Furthermore, the results demonstrate that both hands-on and distance Reiki were effective in reducing symptoms of depression, hopelessness, and stress in treating participants as compared with controls, and that the result were not due to placebo effects.
This not only supports the hypothesis that Reiki is an effective energetic healing modality, it further pointed to the Reiki treatment, rather than touch, as the causative factor.
Reiki effectively reduces negative symptoms regardless of expectation.
Findings supported the hypothesis that the energy effectively reduces negative symptomatology regardless of expectation and, as demonstrated by the placebo group, expectation alone does not produce such changes in symptomatology.
Most importantly, the effects of Reiki were demonstrated to last at least 1 year after the completion of merely 6 hours of treatment.