How Mindful Compassion Practices Can Cultivate Social and Emotional Learning (original) (raw)
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Journal of Psychologists and Counsellors in Schools
The success of Social Emotional Learning (SEL) interventions is thought to rely on teacher social emotional competency, student-teacher relationships, and the readiness of the school environment. From an evolutionary motivational systems perspective, an underlying driver behind these aspects is the motivational state of students and teachers. Providing a foundational framework for supporting SEL development may be a critical differentiating factor in successfully incorporating SEL into curriculum to enhance individual and group-level wellbeing. This article presents compassion as a motivational framework that can be used to support SEL. We review theoretical perspectives and empirical research applying compassion to help regulate emotional experience and provide a series of possible suggestions on how to integrate compassion into classrooms. Specifically, we provide a series of suggestions on how compassion can help with student and staff wellbeing. A compassionate approach to estab...
2014
Compassion is becoming a focus for psycho-educational training courses and has been linked to better education and employment outcomes. Higher education can be a stressful period and is often a time when mental wellbeing difficulties develop. The aim of this study was to develop and evaluate a compassion focused therapy training course for use within the higher education context. The course was evaluated in the short and medium term using self-report questionnaires measuring self-compassion, self-criticism, academic selfefficacy, and psychological distress, as well as interviews. A small sample size (n=9) limited the interpretation of findings. Improvements in self-compassion, self-criticism, and academic selfefficacy were observed both immediately, at a six-month follow-up. However, a small increase in psychological distress was also observed. The training course was acceptable to all participants, with practice and feedback from all participants being the elements cited as most useful. Further research, with a larger sample size, which examines the impact of compassion focused training on academic grades and wellbeing is required.
Compassion Education for Prosocial Behavior and Well-Being Among College Students
Journal of Mental Health and Social Behaviour
Recent studies indicate that many young adults, especially US college students, experience high levels of stress, depression, anxiety, cyberbullying, and sexual violence. Many institutions of higher education rely on policies that often are reportedly biased towards materialistic pursuits, science and mathematics curriculums, and standardized testing which may promote students' extrinsic motivation and individualistic behaviors. This review examines the potential benefits of compassion education to enhance the prosocial attitudes, mental health, and well-being among undergraduate college students. The two overarching goals of this paper are first, to highlight the current mental health challenges facing undergraduate college students and their causes, and second, to propose possible solutions to address these issues. Data from empirical studies on compassion are reviewed to examine the effectiveness of compassion education and training approaches in establishing a safer, healthier, happier, and more inclusive educational learning environment leading to enhanced prosocial behaviors and positive mental health.
Compassion Education for Prosocial Behavior and Well-Being Among College Students Article Details
Journal of Mental Health and Social Behaviour, 2020
Recent studies indicate that many young adults, especially US college students, experience high levels of stress, depression, anxiety, cyberbullying, and sexual violence. Many institutions of higher education rely on policies that often are reportedly biased towards materialistic pursuits, science and mathematics curriculums, and standardized testing which may promote students' extrinsic motivation and individualistic behaviors. This review examines the potential benefits of compassion education to enhance the prosocial attitudes, mental health, and well-being among undergraduate college students. The two overarching goals of this paper are first, to highlight the current mental health challenges facing undergraduate college students and their causes, and second, to propose possible solutions to address these issues. Data from empirical studies on compassion are reviewed to examine the effectiveness of compassion education and training approaches in establishing a safer, healthier, happier, and more inclusive educational learning environment leading to enhanced prosocial behaviors and positive mental health.
PLOS ONE, 2022
Objectives Schools are experiencing an unprecedented mental health crisis, with teachers reporting high levels of stress and burnout, which has adverse consequences to their mental and physical health. Addressing mental and physical health problems and promoting wellbeing in educational settings is thus a global priority. This study investigated the feasibility and effectiveness of an 8-week Compassionate Mind Training program for Teachers (CMT-T) on indicators of psychological and physiological wellbeing. Methods A pragmatic randomized controlled study with a stepped-wedge design was conducted in a sample of 155 public school teachers, who were randomized to CMT-T (n = 80) or a waitlist control group (WLC; n = 75). Participants completed self-report measures of psychological distress, burnout, overall and professional wellbeing, compassion and self-criticism at baseline, post-intervention, and 3-months follow-up. In a sub-sample (CMT-T, n = 51; WLC n = 36) resting heart-rate variab...
How Mindfulness forms the Foundation for Cultivating Compassion
What is one thing that pre-kindergarten – college-level teachers have in common across the globe? They all want their students to “pay attention!” The challenge is that many students are coming to class without ever having been equipped with the skills to pay attention. This challenge is further exasperated by the fact that students are also not provided with opportunities to adopt the strategies that would help them regulate the daily fluctuation of emotions common to learning. Add to this the increased complication of their experiencing a myriad of life emotions and the stress, anxiety, anger and frustration that often arise from these experiences, and the result is the dysregulation of emotion and the negative impact on students’ learning and development. Ah wait… there is more…if you add to this the further complication of many adolescent-aged through young adult (12-25 years of age) students’ inability to choose a wise action , even when they know that what they are doing is wrong, it is a wonder how any learning and development (particularly in an environment that promotes kindness) takes place at all. What does all this have to do with the importance of cultivating compassion and the role of mindfulness within it? Well, we invite you to “pay attention” while we explain.
Evaluation of a Compassionate Mind Training Intervention with School Teachers and Support Staff
Mindfulness
Objectives Teacher retention is a key issue facing schools, with stress, student behavior, current competitive policies, and practices resulting in many leaving within the first 5 years of qualification. Consequently, recent in-school research initiatives have focused on resilience training, although the quality of such conducted studies is debated. Drawn from compassion-focused therapy (CFT), this study set out to explore a six-module compassionate mind training (CMT) program with school staff to improve well-being. Methods As part of their continued professional development, over 70 teachers and support staff took part in the CMT, with a mixed-measures AAB quantitative and qualitative design employed. This enabled us to explore both implementation effectiveness and outcome effectiveness in terms of parameters of well-being. Results The initiative was well received with the majority of staff reporting positively on their experiences of the curriculum and practices. Additionally, exercise practice was associated with significant increases in self-compassion (p < 0.01) and significant decreases in self-criticism (p < 0.05). Thematic analyses further revealed benefits of CMT for dealing with emotional difficulties. Conclusions As a feasibility study, our results demonstrate many benefits of CMT in educational settings. CMT may hold promise as a way of helping those in education counteract the current competition-based nature of education, especially that which contributes to negative changes in well-being. Given this, future research should employ a control group design, a larger sample size, and a range of well-being measures at follow-up, to fully evaluate the utility of CMT in educational settings.
“How to Teach and Practice Compassion and Self-Compassion”
The objective of this presentation is to explore how to use Compassion and Self-Compassion, and how those can be integrated into your personal life and your work with clients as well as for the therapist’s own well-being in order to prevent burnout or empathy fatigue, and what may become depletion of the social interest. Two main learning objectives for the presentation: (1) Participants will learn how to define compassion and differentiate compassion from empathy; and how to use compassion as a psychological skill, and how to place compassion in the continuum of the Social Interest. (2) Participants will learn how to practice Compassion on daily basis towards others and self, and how to cultivate compassion in therapy. Participants will also be able to define and understand subtle differences in terms used such as: Mindfulness, Therapeutic Mindfulness, Awareness, Acceptance, Empathy, Loving-Kindness, and Compassion. Specific Adlerian concepts and techniques that will be addressed are Encouragement and Resilience, and how nurturing and encouraging language, just as in Mindful Compassion, is more effective than criticism and punishment a context of Social Interest Summary of Presentation: Introduction Discovering Compassion and its roots. What is Acceptance, Compassion, and Self-Compassion, and what it is Not? Compassion Burnout vs. Empathy Burnout Primary two emotions involved that motivate us to help others are: empathic concern, which is focused on others, and a desire to relieve their suffering; and personal distress, which is focused on self, and a desire to relieve own discomfort with other’s suffering, leading to withdrawal by desire to protect oneself from negative emotions. Comparison with Adlerian Vertical and Horizontal Striving towards a goal. Differences between Self-Esteem and Self-Compassion. Self-Compassion creates feelings of encouragement, accepting what is in the present moment, and accepting being “good enough”, vs Self-Esteem which creates feelings of contingent self-worth, narcissism, ego-defensive anger, and prejudice. Similarity of Paul Gilbert-Social Mentality Theory and Alfred Adler Gemeinschaftsgeful (Social Interest/Community Feeling) Self-Compassion as a motivational tool, vs self-criticism. Motivation behind self-criticism comes from fear of being worthless, but motivation behind Self-Compassion comes from the desire of well being and health, while emphasis is on self-accepting and not-self improvement, creating emotionally supportive environment, accepting being “good enough” which promotes change and growth. Self-Compassion is linked to motivation, greater intrinsic motivation and desire to learn and grow, personal accountability, more effective coping, greater compassion and focus on others, attachment security, family systems. Current relevant research behind Mindfulness and Self-Compassion Exercise: Loving - Kindness and Self-Compassion meditation
Mindfulness, 2022
Objectives This paper describes the emergence of the scientific study of mindfulness in schools; summarizes findings of experimental research on the impacts of school-based mindfulness programs (SBMPs) on student outcomes in prekindergarten, primary, and secondary school settings (ages 4-18 years); discusses scientific limitations and wider critiques of this work; and offers suggestions for future research. Methods Public data are used to describe the emergence of science on SBMPs, the foci of this research, and the academic disciplines contributing to it. A narrative summary of scientific findings regarding the impacts of SBMPs on students, and critiques of this work, is also presented. Results Research is increasing and is primarily psychological and prevention-oriented. Evidence shows SBMPs can enhance students' self-regulation abilities, but SBMPs' impacts on other student outcomes at different ages are equivocal. The current research has significant limitations, and these, alongside wider critiques of the work, suggest important directions for research. Conclusions In the next generation of science, we suggest (a) improving the experimental research; (b) expanding developmental research; and (c) re-envisioning assumptions, theories, and methods in research to go "beyond all splits" towards a non-dualistic and relationally, culturally, contextually, ethically, and developmentally grounded science on mindfulness and compassion for students in schools.
2013
Psychosocial interventions often aim to alleviate negative emotional states. However, there is growing interest in cultivating positive emotional states and qualities. One particular target is compassion, but it is not yet clear whether compassion can be trained. A community sample of 100 adults were randomly assigned to a 9-week compassion cultivation training (CCT) program (n = 60) or a waitlist control condition (n = 40). Before and after this 9-week period, participants completed self-report inventories that measured compassion for others, receiving compassion from others, and selfcompassion. Compared to the waitlist control condition, CCT resulted in significant improvements in all three domains of compassion-compassion for others, receiving compassion from others, and self-compassion. The amount of formal meditation practiced during CCT was associated with increased compassion for others. Specific domains of compassion can be intentionally cultivated in a training program. These findings may have important implications for mental health and well-being.