NASA resilience and leadership: examining the phenomenon of awe.
Jeff Thompson
Frontiers in Psychology June 9, 2023 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1158437 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Qualitative study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 1 |
| Population | A NASA medical and mental health professional who also serves in a leadership role |
| Topics | Philosophy of mind |
| Keywords | Resilience Leadership Well-being Meaning in life Nasa Awe |
| Key findings | The authors report that reflecting on awe experiences can support finding meaning and purpose in life, evoke gratitude, increase social connectedness, and promote optimism and other resilience skills in the moment, with a generally sustainable positive effect. They suggest this may be relevant for individuals in stressful environments, including those supporting astronaut wellbeing. |
Abstract
This study examines how a phenomenon, awe, along with related resilience practices, is perceived by a NASA medical and mental health professional, who also serves in a leadership role, and how awe has impacted their work and personal life. Considering both their leadership role and how their work involves supporting the wellbeing of astronauts pre-mission, during missions, and post-mission, the potential impact of awe on the NASA expert has individual implications along with many others, especially in stressful environments. The results indicate that reflecting on awe experiences can support a person finding meaning and purpose in their life, evoke gratitude, increase social connectedness, promote optimism and other resilience skills in the moment, and generally have a sustainable positive effect.
Comparable studies
Other qualitative studies on philosophy of mind, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Qualitative thematic analysis of the phenomenology of near-death experiences Cardiac arrest survivors | 2018 | Qualitative study | n = 34 |
| Phenomenology and Sequelae of 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine Use Psychiatrists who had taken MDMA | 1992 | Qualitative study | n = 20 |
| A phenomenology of meditation-induced light experiences: traditional buddhist and neurobiological perspectives American Buddhist practitioners | 2014 | Qualitative study | |
| Evoking the ineffable: The phenomenology of extreme sports. Extreme sports participants across three continents, including BASE jumping, big wave... | 2017 | Qualitative study | n = 15 |
| Phenomenology and content of the inhaled N, N-dimethyltryptamine (N, N-DMT) experience. Naturalistic inhaled N,N-DMT experiences posted to the r/DMT Reddit community | 2022 | Qualitative analysis | n = 3,778 |
Citations in the library
Cites 6
- The Varieties of Self-Transcendent Experience Review of General Psychology May 1, 2017
- A conceptual clarification of the experience of awe: An interpretative phenomenological analysis. The Humanistic Psychologist July 1, 2011
- Self-transcendence or self-enhancement: People's perceptions of meaning and happiness in relation to the self. Journal of Experimental Psychology General February 1, 2023
- Awe helps us remember why it is important to forget the self. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences October 1, 2021
- Awe Narratives: A Mindfulness Practice to Enhance Resilience and Wellbeing. Frontiers in Psychology April 14, 2022
and 1 more in the library