Being Mindful about Mindfulness: An Invitation to Extend Occupational Engagement into the Growing Mindfulness Discourse
Journal of Occupational Science September 28, 2011 DOI: 10.1080/14427591.2011.610777 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Meditation |
| Citations | 38 |
| Key points | Argues that mindfulness has a natural fit with occupation and should be included in occupational science: informal awareness cultivation facilitates engagement in and attunement to activity, and formal meditation is itself an occupation. The author also distinguishes mindfulness from flow, consciousness, and presence, and speculates about why it is underrepresented in the discipline. |
Abstract
This paper provides a rationale for the recognition of mindfulness in the occupational science discourse. There is a plethora of diverse scholastic interest in mindfulness, however not within the occupational science discipline. Mindfulness has a natural fit with occupation; its informal practice of awareness cultivation facilitates heightened engagement in and attunement to activity and the formal practice of mindfulness through meditation is itself an occupation. This paper reviews mindfulness and its contribution to enhancement of life quality and personal well-being. Additionally it speculates why mindfulness is not adequately represented in occupational science literature and research, and provides rationale for the inclusion of mindfulness into the discipline's field of investigation. In constructing this rationale, mindfulness is differentiated from the psychological concepts of flow, consciousness, and presence which in the literature are more commonly associated to participation in occupation. The author's own mindful experience while engaged in occupation serves as a backdrop against which to support the inclusion of mindfulness into occupational science scholarship.
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 6
- The interplay between being and belonging through meditation: A grounded theory methods study Journal of Occupational Science September 11, 2018
- A Manualized Occupational Therapy Mindfulness Module for Clients with PTSD August 1, 2022
- "I seemed calmer, clearer, and better able to react to challenging situations": phenomenological reflections on learning about mindfulness in health professions education. Advances in health sciences education : theory and practice September 9, 2024
- Mindfulness in paediatric occupational therapy practice: a phenomenological inquiry. Disability and Rehabilitation May 22, 2023
- Mindfulness and human occupation: A scoping review. Scandinavian journal of occupational therapy April 2019
and 1 more in the library
Cites 8
- The benefits of being present: Mindfulness and its role in psychological well-being. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 2003
- Mindfulness training as a clinical intervention: A conceptual and empirical review. Clinical Psychology Science and Practice 2003
- Mindfulness and flow in occupational engagement: presence in doing. Canadian Journal of Occupational Therapy February 1, 2011
- Mindfulness meditation: a primer for rheumatologists. Rheumatic diseases clinics of North America February 2011
- Challenge-Skills and Mindfulness: An Exploration of the Conundrum of Flow Process OTJR: Occupational Therapy Journal of Research 2006
and 3 more in the library