‘I had more time to listen to my inner voice’: Zen meditation tourism for Generation Z
Jiayu Wu, Juan Tang, Elizabeth Agyeiwaah
Tourist Studies August 4, 2023 DOI: 10.1177/14687976231189833 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Phenomenology-based ethnography Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 12 |
| Population | Generation Z participants who attended a Zen meditation camp |
| Topics | Buddhism Meditation |
| Citations | 20 |
| Key findings | Zen meditation tourism yields long-term positive benefits for Generation Z in fading yet abiding practices, progressive socialization, and complicated self-growth. |
Abstract
With much academic attention to experiential learning in on-site tourism experiences, the benefits of Zen meditation tourism on Generation Z after their re-entry into daily secular life remains largely unexplored. Drawing on experiential learning theory, this study explores the benefits experienced by participants after Zen meditation tourism in three stages including reflection, learning results, and active experimentation. Employing phenomenology-based ethnography, six consecutive rounds of online face-to-face interviews were conducted with 12 informants who were continuously traced after attending a Zen camp. The study findings revealed long-term positive benefits in three aspects of this generational cohort. First, Zen practices tend to be fading yet abiding after the Zen camp which continues sporadically into daily life. Second, socialisation is continuously progressive; but self-growth is complicated and unstable. Theoretical and practical implications of these novel findings are discussed.
Comparable studies
Other qualitative studies on buddhism, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| The varieties of contemplative experience: A mixed-methods study of meditation-related challenges in Western Buddhists Western Buddhist meditation practitioners and experts in Theravāda, Zen, and Tibetan... | 2017 | Qualitative study with mixed-methods | |
| A phenomenology of meditation-induced light experiences: traditional buddhist and neurobiological perspectives American Buddhist practitioners | 2014 | Qualitative study | |
| Common Core Thesis and Qualitative and Quantitative Analysis of Mysticism in Chinese Buddhist Monks and Nuns Chinese Pure Land and Chan Buddhist monks and nuns | 2011 | Mixed-methods study | n = 139 |
| Anger regulation in traumatized Cambodian refugees: the perspectives of Buddhist monks. Buddhist Cambodian monks in Massachusetts | 2011 | Qualitative study | n = 6 |
| The Lived Experiences of Experienced Vipassana Mahasi Meditators: an Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis Experienced Vipassana Mahasi meditators | 2018 | Qualitative study |
Citations in the library
Cites 8
- Investigating the phenomenological matrix of mindfulness-related practices from a neurocognitive perspective. American Psychologist October 1, 2015
- Long-term mindfulness training is associated with reliable differences in resting respiration rate Scientific Reports June 7, 2016
- Meditation training influences mind wandering and mindless reading. Psychology of Consciousness Theory Research and Practice March 1, 2016
- Travel for mindfulness through Zen retreat experience: A case study at Donghua Zen Temple. Tourism Management September 3, 2020
- “Who is Buddha? I am Buddha.”—The motivations and experiences of Chinese young adults attending a Zen meditation camp in Taiwan August 7, 2020
and 3 more in the library