Prevalence and predictors of meditation use in Australia and New Zealand: results from a nationally representative survey

Introduction. Meditation use has grown significantly in recent decades. However, population prevalence data is largely absent in Australasia. Methods. We surveyed adults in Australia (n=2,072) and New Zealand (n=571) in 2023, using census-informed quotas for age, gender, ancestry/ethnicity, region and income. We calculated lifetime and past year meditation use estimates and conducted univariable analyses and multi-variable logistic regression to investigate predictive factors. Results. We estimate that 41.5% of Australian (~8.6M) and 35.7% of New Zealand (~1.5M) adults have ever used meditation, while 32.8% (6.8M) and 24.9% (1.0M), respectively, used meditation in the past year. In multivariable regression, only education (Australia: OR=1.37; New Zealand: OR=1.57) and age (Australia: OR=0.78; New Zealand: OR=0.59) predicted past year use in Australia and New Zealand. Multivariable regression indicated several sociodemo-graphic characteristics (Australia: gender, ancestry/ethnicity; New Zealand: LGBTQIA+ status) and health factors (Australia: cannabis use, psychedelic use, mental healthcare utilisation, complementary/alternative healthcare utilisation; New Zealand: physical healthcare utilisation) that were related to past year meditation use. Over 21.7% of Australian (~1.5M) and 17.6% of New Zealand meditators (~0.2M) experienced a meditation-related adverse effect. Conclusion. Australia and New Zealand have amongst the highest rates of meditation use globally, with meditation being used as an adjunct and/or alternative to mental health services. There is a need for more research into specific meditation practices and their application to mental health. Clinical guidelines on best-practice for meditation use would help to maximise benefits and minimise harms.