The Psychological Reconstruction of Mindfulness: From Buddhist Origins to Modern Operationalization

Mindfulness, as deployed in contemporary psychology, increasingly functions as a cultural–psychological boundary object whose definition is shaped by outcome-based criteria, while its original ethical orientation, investigative function, and liberation-oriented purpose from early Buddhist frameworks recede. This conceptual analysis traces how assumptions about attention, embodiment, and purpose influence construct formation and validation, drawing on early Buddhist sources, historical analyses of Buddhist modernism, psychological measurement research, and studies of XR-based mindfulness interventions. The paper advocates for a pluri-epistemic approach to psychological science that foregrounds epistemic lineage and construct transparency, clarifying the trade-offs involved in abstraction, measurement, and scalability.

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Abstract

Abstract This article presents a conceptual analysis of mindfulness as a cultural–psychological boundary object, examining how contemporary psychological deployments diverge from early Buddhist frameworks. Treating Buddhist psychology as a coherent theoretical framework, the analysis traces how dominant psychological definitions increasingly classify mindfulness through outcome-based criteria. At the same time, ethical orientation, investigative function, and liberation-oriented purpose recede into the background. Using a conceptual and genealogical approach, the paper synthesizes literature from early Buddhist sources, historical analyses of Buddhist modernism, psychological measurement research, and studies of XR-based mindfulness interventions. Rather than evaluating intervention efficacy, it examines how assumptions about attention, embodiment, and purpose shape the formation and validation of constructs. The analysis supports a pluri-epistemic approach to psychological science that foregrounds epistemic lineage and construct transparency, clarifying the trade-offs involved in abstraction, measurement, and scalability.