Abstract
This article presents a psychological study with Tibetan Buddhism from Spain. Employing a mixed quantitative-qualitative approach, the study investigates how Buddhist beliefs, meditation practices and social belongingness are related to personality traits. In the quantitative analysis, significative lower scores in Sensation Seeking-Impulsivity and Activity were found when comparing the Tibetan Buddhist group (N = 30) with a non-Buddhist religious group (N = 30) and a non-religious group (N = 30). Furthermore, lower scores in Neuroticism-Anxiety and Future Anxiety were found when comparing a Buddhist group with a religious group. In-depth interviews with a subset of Buddhist participants (N = 8) shed light on the subjective perceived psychological effects of Buddhist practices, highlighting their role in coping with problems related to Future Anxiety, Sensation Seeking-Impulsivity, Aggression-Hostility and Neuroticism-Anxiety. The qualitative analysis also reveals an ‘ascetic’ profile among participants, characterized by an energetic and empathic style, yet with less attachment to conventional social norms and materialistic achievements.
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