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Digital Technology, Meditative and Contemplative Practices, and Transcendent Experiences

Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems Proceedings April 21, 2020 DOI: 10.1145/3313831.3376356 (opens in new tab)

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Study at a glance

AI-extracted from the abstract
Characteristics Qualitative study Peer reviewed
Sample size 16
Population Experienced practitioners from a variety of contemplative traditions
Topics Meditation
Key findings Practitioners see digital technology as a mixed blessing: useful practically, but potentially interfering with transcendent experiences. They mitigate negative effects through three strategies: limiting use to instrumental purposes, using interactions as grist for self-reflection, and integrating technology into practice.

Abstract

Meditative and contemplative practices are common among U.S. adults, but the impact of digital technology use on these practices and on associated transcendent experiences is poorly understood. Through semi-structured interviews with sixteen experienced practitioners from a variety of traditions, we find that practitioners consider digital technology to be a mixed blessing. While they see its practical value, they are wary of its stimulation-based effects and find minimal usefulness in commercial meditation apps. They also feel that digital technology use may interfere with possible transcendent experiences. The practitioners, however, applied insights from their respective practices to strategically mitigate digital technology's negative effects in three ways: limiting its use to instrumental purposes, using technology interactions as grist for self-reflection, and integrating technology itself into a site for practice. Specific design recommendations are discussed.

Comparable studies

Other qualitative studies on meditation, 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
The Effects of Mindfulness-based Stress Reduction on Nurse Stress and Burnout Nurses in a hospital system 2004 Implementation study with mixed methods
An exploratory mixed methods study of the acceptability and effectiveness of mindfulness -based cognitive therapy for patients with active depression and anxiety in primary care Primary care patients with recurrent depression or recurrent depression and anxiety 2006 Exploratory mixed methods study n = 13
A qualitative study of mindfulness‐based cognitive therapy for depression Participants in mindfulness-based cognitive therapy in a mental-health context 2001 Qualitative study n = 7
Effortless awareness: using real time neurofeedback to investigate correlates of posterior cingulate cortex activity in meditators' self-report Meditators 2013 Qualitative study using grounded theory methodology

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