Understanding the power of mindfulness from a cultural-psychological perspective
Culture & Psychology September 7, 2023 DOI: 10.1177/1354067x231201387 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Meditation |
| Keywords | Transformative learning Perspective graphical Power physics Psychotherapist Developmental psychology |
| Citations | 18 |
| Key points | Argues that mindfulness emerges from conflicts between private needs (fantasms) and community myths, and that it can transform both one's personal hierarchy of needs and one's relationship to cultural myths. |
Abstract
In the present paper I investigate the phenomenon of mindfulness from a cultural-psychological perspective. During the past years mindfulness has been primarily treated as an independent (intervention) variable trying to evidence its effectiveness in relation to psychotherapy as well as to specific work outcomes such as a decrease in stress symptoms at work. Yet, what has been rather missing within the literature is the analysis of mindfulness from a theoretical and historical perspective. Arguing with E.E. Boesch, I show based on an autoethnography that the need for mindfulness emerges when there are conflicts with one’s fantasms (private needs, goals, wants, wishes) or with a specific myth in one’s community (you should work hard in order to become a good citizen). I conclude with the findings that mindfulness has the power to alter one’s fantasms hierachy as well as the stance towards a specific myth in one’s community. This is further evidenced by analyzing the glass bead game of H. Hesse and which role mindfulness plays in there – a transformative role for individuals and groups.
Comparable studies
Other theoretical and historical papers on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mindfulness: A proposed operational definition. | 2004 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Mechanisms of mindfulness | 2005 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| How Does Mindfulness Meditation Work? Proposing Mechanisms of Action From a Conceptual and Neural Perspective | 2011 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for depression | 2006 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Self-awareness, self-regulation, and self-transcendence (S-ART): a framework for understanding the neurobiological mechanisms of mindfulness | 2012 | Theoretical or philosophical paper |
Citations in the library
Cited by 2
- Mindfulness: Future Pathways and Cross-Fertilizations through Cultural Psychology. Integrative Psychological and Behavioral Science December 21, 2024
- Understanding The Process of Taoistic-Informed Mindfulness from a Meadian Perspective. Integrative Psychological and Behavioral Science September 2024
Cites 4
- Relating Cultural Psychology and Eco-phenomenology − Setting the Seeds for a Fertile Cooperation Human Arenas March 13, 2023
- Mindfulness-Based Interventions for Anxiety and Depression Psychiatric Clinics of North America September 18, 2017
- Mindfulness in Motion (MIM): An Onsite Mindfulness Based Intervention (MBI) for Chronically High Stress Work Environments to Increase Resiliency and Work Engagement. Journal of Visualized Experiments July 1, 2015
- The Effect of Mindfulness-Based Therapy on Anxiety and Depression: A Meta-Analytic Review Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology April 1, 2010