Teaching for well-being? Introducing mindfulness in an undergraduate course

Carly Meredith Ingram; Andrea V. Breen; Tricia Marie van Rhijn

doi:10.1080/0309877x.2017.1409343

Teaching for well-being? Introducing mindfulness in an undergraduate course

Carly Meredith Ingram, Andrea V. Breen, Tricia Marie van Rhijn

Journal of Further and Higher Education December 21, 2017 DOI: 10.1080/0309877x.2017.1409343 (opens in new tab)

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Study at a glance

AI-extracted from the abstract

Characteristics	Qualitative study Peer reviewed
Sample size	14
Population	Undergraduate students enrolled in a class incorporating a mindfulness programme
Interventions	Mindfulness meditation Walking meditation Body scan Mindful eating Tonglen meditation
Topics	Meditation
Citations	16
Key findings	Students varied in their adoption of and preference for six brief mindfulness practices, and while most reported benefits such as self-reflection, self-awareness and relaxation, some reported mindfulness was 'not for them'. The authors suggest mindfulness at the start of class improved discussion quality and learning, and argue students should be helped to develop a 'toolbox' of self-care approaches that may include, but are not limited to, mindfulness.

Abstract

Student mental health and well-being are increasing concerns in higher education. This exploratory study examined students’ learning in a mindfulness programme incorporated into an undergraduate class. Six brief mindfulness-based practices were introduced: mindfulness meditation, walking meditation, body scan, mindful eating, loving-kindness and Tonglen meditation. Fourteen students were interviewed after completion of the course to explore their conceptions and use of mindfulness and other self-care practices. Results of thematic analyses suggest that there were variations in students’ adoption of mindfulness-based practices and students’ preferred mindfulness techniques. Most participants reported that mindfulness instruction and practice were beneficial but this was not universal; some students reported that mindfulness was ‘not for them’. Findings suggest that mindfulness fostered self-reflection, self-awareness and relaxation for many students and incorporating mindfulness at the beginning of class improved the overall quality of discussion and facilitated students’ learning. Findings further suggest that students incorporated mindfulness into existing self-care practices that included a variety of other preferred techniques to enhance self-reflection, self-awareness and relaxation. Overall, our findings suggest that students should be helped, through explicit instruction, to develop a ‘toolbox’ of self-care approaches that may include, but are not necessarily limited to, mindfulness techniques.

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

Citations in the library

Cited by 3

Cites 12

and 7 more in the library