Cogenerating insights into the dialectics of contemplative practices in educational and lifeworld settings.
Grant Zouch, Joanna Higgins, Suskya Goodall, Robyn Browne
Cultural Studies of Science Education 2021 DOI: 10.1007/s11422-021-10038-8 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Qualitative study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Primary students |
| Intervention | meditative breathing |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Keywords | Authentic inquiry Authentiek onderzoek Contemplatief onderzoek Contemplatieve praktijken Contemplative inquiry Opmerkzaamheid Wellbeing Welzijn |
| Key findings | Contemplative practices have the potential to transform physical, mental, emotional, and social lifeworlds through a contagious individual and collective ripple effect. |
Abstract
Contemplative practices are used with increasing frequency across various fields of knowledge, and increasingly so within educational settings as a means of promoting wellness and wellbeing. In this paper, we draw on qualitative data derived from primary students' experiences of meditative breathing and use them as a springboard to extrapolate meaning and cogenerate novel insights around contemplative practices. Theoretically framed within an authentic inquiry | contemplative inquiry dialectic, this approach seeks to situate the research team within the contemplative process, striving to make a difference for stakeholders. Intentionally acknowledging and drawing on our values, beliefs, and lifeworlds, this authentic inquiry | contemplative inquiry allows for the cogeneration of deep and meaningful insights. Insights coalesce around four emergent dialectics of contemplative practices: relaxed | stressed, attentive | distracted, still | energized and unbounded | constrained. Our co-constructed contemplative narrative argues that within the complex space of unbounded fields, contemplative practices have the potential to transform physical, mental, emotional, and social lifeworlds through a contagious individual and collective ripple effect.