Developing empathy as a process of re-humanization: insights from South American students and their experiences with contemplative practices.
Gaston Bacquet Quiroga
Research Square January 10, 2024 preprint DOI: 10.21203/rs.3.rs-3848377/v1 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Qualitative study |
|---|---|
| Population | Trainee teachers in Chile |
| Interventions | guided meditation nonviolent communication exercises Tonglen meditation compassion through recognition |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Key findings | The nonviolence training program reports success in helping participants recognize the humanity of others across differences, identify shared elements of human experience, and develop feelings of warmth and closeness toward others. Silent meditation was challenging, while practices that encouraged sharing were favored. |
Abstract
Abstract Violence in any of its manifestations is the practice of dehumanizing another. By perpetrating violent acts on another, we diminish their value and take away their dignity. The underlying philosophy of nonviolence, on the other hand, informed as it is by traditions that have historically influenced each other from Hinduism to Western secular movements, is fueled by this understanding and thus, it encourages practitioners to recognize the humanity in the oppressor, in those who are different, have been marginalized or thought of as less valuable. Developing empathy is a key component in the path towards that recognition, and this is why it was a key component of a nonviolence training program undertaken with two groups of trainee teachers in Chile. Participants were led in a series of exercises aimed at fostering empathy and compassion; such exercises were informed by the principles of contemplative pedagogy. Later in the study, participants had an opportunity for leading their peers through empathy-development tasks chosen by themselves. Examples of these exercises include tasks from the Wayfairer project, guided meditation, nonviolent communication exercises, Tonglen meditation and compassion through recognition. Results of the study show success in being able to recognize the humanity of the other through our differences, in recognizing the many shared elements of our human experience and in helping participants develop feelings of warmth and closeness towards others. The challenges of silent meditation were acknowledged, while practices that encouraged sharing were favored.
Comparable studies
Other qualitative studies on meditation, most cited first.
Citations in the library
Cites 4
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