ISCS 2016 Adolescents' Perceptions of

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Offer different types of contemplative practice, not just formal meditation (e.g. ... If people don't understand the relevance of CPs, they may not value them. ... And you relax, and you just kind of let ... you more a detached view of what's going on.
Adolescents’  Perceptions  of  Contemplative  Practice Jacqueline  E.  Maloney,  M.A.,  Jenna  K.  Whitehead,  M.A.,  M.  Jennifer  Kitil,  M.P.H.,  Kimberly  A.  Schonert-­Reichl,  Ph.D. Poster  Presented  at  the  2016  International  Symposium  for  Contemplative  Studies;;  November  10-­13,  2016;;  San  Diego,  CA RESULTS:  MINDUP  GROUP  ONLY

INTRODUCTION In  2008,  99  grade  4  and  5  children  took  part  in  a  randomized  controlled   trial  (RCT)  evaluating  a  mindfulness-­‐based  social  and  emotional  learning   (SEL)  program,  MindUP,  implemented  by  trained  classroom  teachers.  The   program  included  12  weekly  lessons  on  mindfulness,  SEL,  and  positive   psychology.  It  also  included  a  3  times  daily  mindfulness  practice  in  which   students  mindfully  listened  to  a  resonant  chime  followed  by  a  three-­‐ minute  mindful  breathing  practice.  Compared  to  the  Control  Group,  the   MindUP  children  demonstrated  significantly  larger  positive  gains  in   computer  tasks  of  executive  function;  self-­‐reported  empathy,   perspective-­‐taking,  emotion  control,  optimism,  school-­‐self  concept,   mindfulness,  and  decreased  symptoms  of  depression;  increased  peer-­‐ ratings  of  prosociality and  acceptance;  and  decreased  peer-­‐rated   aggression  (Schonert-­‐Reichl et  al.,  2015).  The  present  longitudinal  study   followed  up  with  the  students  8  years  later.  As  part  of  a  larger  follow-­‐up   study,  we  conducted  40  qualitative  interviews  with  both  MindUP  (n =  20)   and  Control  Group  (n =  20).

RESEARCH  QUESTIONS MindUP  Group:  What  are  MindUP  participants'  reflections  on  the   program,  and  how  do  they  understand  the  concept  of   mindfulness  today?

“You  didn’t  really  think  about   anything  else  at  the  time.  Like  the   things  about  life,  such  as  school  or   family  or  friends  or  whatever,  it  was   just  the  feeling  of  being  a  human   being.  It  was  kind  of  connecting  back   with  that  kind  of  feeling…  It  felt  really   spiritual  and  really  resonated  with   me…  I  didn’t  forget  that  feeling.”   (Reflecting  on  the  daily  mindfulness   practice).

Spiritual “I  remember  a  lot  of  my  friends   got  fed  up  with  it  because  I  think   it  was  quite  warm  in  the   classroom  and  it  was  mostly  on   sunny  days,  and  they  would  get   restless  and  stuff  like  that.  I   didn’t  really  say  this  to  them   because  it  was  more  of  an   unpopular  opinion,  but  I  enjoyed   doing  it.  I  enjoyed  the  quiet  time,   ‘cause  I’m  generally  a  fairly  quiet   person.”

Enjoyable

“It  was  fun.  For  me  personally,  I  don’t   really  have  problems  in  terms  of   distractions  from  things  so  I  don’t  know   if  it  benefited  me  that  much.  I  think  in   general,  as  an  entire  class  it  would  have   helped  at  least  certain  students  that   struggled  with  concentration.”  

What  Do  You   Remember   About  MindUP?

It’s  Not  For   Everyone

MindUP  &  Control  Groups:   What  are  adolescents'  experiences   with  contemplative  practice  and  what  are  their  perceptions  of   including  contemplative  practices  in  a  high  school  setting?

• •



Peace

Present-­‐Centered   Awareness

Feelings  of   Self-­‐Consciousness

Yes

CONTROL

“Sometimes  you’ll  be  in  the  moment   and  you’ll  just  feel  at  peace  with   everything,  and  you  just  feel   everything,  and  then  you  are  aware   of  everything.  “

Helpful

CONTEMPLATIVE  EDUCATION  PROGRAM  IN HIGH  SCHOOLS?

What  Is   Mindfulness?

“Being  mindful,  being   aware  of  what  you  are   feeling,  being  aware  of   what  other  people  are   feeling,  being  aware  of   what’s  happening  in   situations.”

Calm

Didn’t  Understand   Purpose  of  Program

YOGA

11

12

Maybe

I  Don't  Know

5

1

Relax  and  Let  Go Respond  Better  to   Stressful  Situations

MINDUP

16

3

“I  like  the  idea  of  having  it  when  you  are  a  child  and  then  following  it  back  up  when  you   are  older  because  I  think  people  go  through  such  huge  changes  between,  so  I  think  it’s   really  important  to  have  that.” “There’s  too  many  kids  who  are  just  stressed  out,  and  they  are  not  thinking  clearly." “I  think  that’d  be  good  ‘cause  I  feel  like  it’s  not  at  the  forefront  of  people’s  priorities.   They’re  too  consumed  in  what  did  happen  or  what’s  going  to  happen.  Not  a  lot  of   people  actually  think  about  what’s  happening  in  the  moment  . “I  think  during  high  school  it’s  a  big  change  for  a  lot  of  kids’  lives.  They  are  going   through  a  lot  of  stuff  and  I  think  it’s  definitely  helpful,  especially  if  they’re  having   troubles  finding  their  own  way  to  deal  with  some  of  the  stuff  going  on.” “It  depends  what  it  helps  and  how  it’s  gonna  benefit.  If  you  were  to  do  that  with  high   school  students,  if  you  were  going  to  do  what  I  did  in  grade  4  now,  I  think  there  would   be  some  kids  who  wouldn’t  be  okay  with  it  and  they  just  wouldn’t  do  it.  But  if  it’s  kind   of  offered  as  a  way  to  help  people,  I  think  students  would  take  it  more  seriously.”   “They  might  think  it’s  weird  or  strange.  But  I  think  with  certain  groups  of  kids  it  would   work  – that  would  not  be  an  issue.”

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PARTICIPANT  SUGGESTIONS  FOR  CE  PROGRAMS  

PARTICIPANTS

TAI  CHI  

Gender

65  %  Female,  35%  Male

Grade

55%  Grade  11,  45%  Grade  12

First  Language(s)

70%  English,  10%  Korean, 5%  Cantonese,   5%  Romanian,  5%  Spanish

Control    (n =  20) Gender

50%  Female, 50%  Male

Grade

45%  Grade  11,  55%  Grade  12 95%  English,  5%  Russian

2

1

MINDFULNESS/MEDITATION

Focused  Awareness

Healthier   Relationships

“You’re  more  aware  of   your  body  then.  You’re   more  focused.  You  feel   like  it’s  time  for  yourself,   and  you  don’t  think   about  anything  else,   worry  about  anything   else.  You’re  just  noticing   your  body  and  your   movements.  It’s   peaceful“  

“It  can  make  it  easier   to  interact  with  people,   and  it  can  make  you   much  more  pleasant  to   interact  with.”   “It  feels  like  you  slow   down  kind  of  ‘cause   currently  the  world   seems  so  fast  paced.  It   helps  just  to  slow  down   every  once  in  a  while.”  

NONE

7

5

• • 4

5

Well-­‐being

• •

It’s  Not  For  Everyone Improved  Mood “It  was  kinda  awkward  at   first,  but  then  it  was  fine.   Because  everyone  else   actually  participated.  It’s   kind  of  one  of  those  things   when  you’re  like,  is  anyone   else  actually  going  to  take   this  seriously  or  not?”  

“I’ll  just  feel  happier  afterwards,  and  I’ll   feel  less  stressed  out  and  that  I  can  focus   more  on  the  task  at  hand  as  opposed  to   worrying  about  other  things.  I  can  focus   on  the  homework  that  I  have  that  night   or  the  task  that  I  know  that  I  have  to   accomplish.”  

Benefits  of   Contemplative   Practice

Slowing   Down

• • • •

1

PRAYER

MindUP (n =  20)

Relief  From  Stress   and  Worry “It  kind  of  gives  you  more  a   detached  view  of  what’s  going   on.  It  gives  you  a  chance  to  take   time  to  focus  on  the  different   perspectives  and  analyze  the   things  that  are  going  on  so  you   have  a  more  well-­‐rounded  view.”  

Challenges    with   Contemplative   “It  was  just  hard.  You  had  to  think   Practices too  much  and  at  the  same  time  you  

Feelings  of  Self-­‐ Consciousness

are  not  supposed  to  think  at  all.”  

Clear   Perception

“Some  people  respond  well  to  that  kind   of  thing  [contemplative  practice],  but   others  don’t  really.  They  find  it  kind  of   more  stressful…Trying  to  stay  calm  and   focus  on  one  thing  and  relax  is  kind  of   hard  for  some  people.”  

Misunderstanding Practice

Increased  Stress   for  Some  People “With  a  team  it’s  a  little  harder   because  everyone’s  joking   around  while  you’re  doing  it.”  

Hard  to  Practice  When  Others   Don’t  Take  It  Seriously

• •

Should  be  optional,  not  mandatory Separate  from  regular  class  environment  in  a  calm,  relaxed  space Small  groups  or  one-­‐on-­‐one  instruction  with  qualified  instructors Offer  different  types  of  contemplative  practice,  not  just  formal   meditation  (e.g.,  yoga,  informal  mindfulness  practices  related  to   adolescent  life,  tai  chi) Practical,  relevant,  and  appealing  to  teens  – interactive  and  fun. Should  take  place  during  school  hours  so  as  not  to  add  one  more   thing  to  their  already  busy  schedules No  homework  or  tests Give  people  a  chance  to  share  and  discuss  their  experiences  if   they  choose,  but  let  sharing  be  optional   Emphasize  stress  relief Straight  forward  – not  complicated  practices

CONCLUSIONS • Most  participants  who  have  tried  contemplative  practices  (CPs)   REFERENCES • • • •

found  them  beneficial. Most  teens  cited  CPs  as  important  for  addressing  the  everyday   stresses  and  challenges  they  face. Some  found  CPs  challenging,  boring,  or  stressful. If  people  don’t  understand  the  relevance  of  CPs,  they  may  not   value  them. Contemplative  practice  isn’t  for  everybody,  but  everyone  should   have  the  opportunity  to  try  it  at  least.  It  should  be  included  as  an   option  in  high  schools,  but  CP  should  never  be  mandatory.

Contact  for  references  or  questions: [email protected] kimberly.schonert-­‐[email protected]  

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WHY/WHY  NOT?

“  People  who  do  these   mindfulness  activities  are  kind  of   different…  They  are  usually   pretty  calm  and  sometimes   when  they  have  situations  that   are  really  pressuring  or   situations  that  make  them   anxious,  they  can  have  a   different  approach  to  it  because   they  know  how  to  calm   themselves  down.  But,  people   who  don’t  have  that  experience   don’t  really  know  what  to  do.”

Contemplative  Practice  Since  2008  Study

We  conducted  40  semi-­‐structured,  one-­‐on-­‐one  qualitative  interviews   (20  MindUP,  20  Control),  ranging  from  10  – 30  minutes. We  transcribed  interviews  verbatim. 2  raters  conducted  a  six-­‐step  process  of  thematic  analysis  using  an   iterative  process  that  included  (1)  becoming  familiar  with  data   through  transcribing,  reading,  and  re-­‐reading  while  compiling  initial   ideas;  (2)  generating  initial  codes;  (3)  searching  for  themes;  (4)   reviewing  themes;  (5)  naming  themes;  (6)  reporting  themes  (Braun  &   Clarke,  2006).   Raters  reached  100%  consensus  on  themes  before  reporting.

First  Language(s)

Tames   Worrying   Mind

“Well,  you  sit  there,  and  you   just  kind  of  let  your  mind  relax.   And  you  relax,  and  you  just   kind  of  let  things  happen.  You   let  your  mind  go,  and  you  feel   relaxed  and  calm.  And  you   come  out  the  other  end.”  

RESULTS:  MINDUP  &  CONTROL  GROUP

METHODS •

“it’s  just  a  time  where  I   don’t  need  to  be   worrying  about  the  list   of  to-­‐dos  that  I  have,   but  just  being  able  to   be  in  the  present.”  

Improved Concentration

“I  feel  like  it  did  help  me.  I   feel  like  I  am  a  lot  less   stressed  than  many  of  my   other  friends,  maybe  it  was   because  of  this,  but  who   knows?”

“It  seemed  kind  of  silly.  I   didn’t  really  know  much   about  what  we  were   doing.  From  what  I   remember,  it  makes  a  lot   more  sense  [now].  I   mean,  it  seems  like  it  was   a  good  program.  It  would   have  helped  if  I  kind  of   knew  what  I  was  going   through.”

THOUGHTS  ON  CONTEMPLATIVE  EDUCATION   PROGRAMS  IN  HIGH  SCHOOL