The Educating Gossip™
Producing a Canon and Identifying Areas for Future Targeted Research Highlights Need for both Broader Mindfulness Practices to Study and Fund
In my most recent writing directed specifically for minoritized graduate students, I explore how spiritual mindfulness practices can lead to individual psychological self-transcendence, personal healing and courage to use the creativity of writing and research to bring about deeper personal and social healing (see Clark, 2024). My hope is to inspire graduate students to boldly take on groundbreaking research with spiritual practice at its center.
To foster this hope, I’ve selected two studies and one thesis paper written by African American researchers as a starting place to report the need for more research and funding for the investigation of mindfulness and the need to study other types of spiritual mindfulness practices, in addition to the Loving-Kindness Meditation (LKM) mindfulness practice most often studied. I celebrate these authors by reading them through the lens of the Clark Unitive Effect (CUE) theory: positive critique (opinion or judgment) and critical analysis (systematic, objective, and analytical), acceptance, and realized values that inform action that will more likely than not lead to healing and peace.
In Nonreactivity and Resilience to Stress: Gauging the Mindfulness of African American College Students (Freligh & Debb, 2019), the study focuses exclusively on African American undergraduate students to understand how mindfulness is related to resilience. Results indicated that it might be useful if new mindfulness-based practices were created specifically with the intention of building the skill of nonreactivity in order to cultivate resilience.
According to the CUE theory, spiritual practices that affirm the perceived duality of this world yet accept that the true nature of this human experience is unity and diversity promotes healing and peace. Through this process, individuals can experience a sense of personal liberation of the mind. This revealing nurtures confidence and courage to foster individual beliefs, group ethics, and larger cultural systems and structures that lead to human psychological maturation and peaceful action in the world.
Joseph Campbell asserted that today’s mythological or spiritual realization ought to address both the standard concerns and dealings with “the maturation of the individual, from dependency through adulthood, through maturity, and then to the exit,” but most importantly also “to address concerns and dealings about global society (everybody on the planet, not separated by nativist or nationalistic identities), and how to relate this global society to the world of nature and the cosmos” (Campbell & Moyers, 1991). The world’s wisdom traditions contain a myriad of spiritual practices including, songs, dances, mantras, hymns, prayers, lectio divina (praying with sacred texts), and more. I suggest investigating a wider array of such spiritual practices and their potency on not only physical but also emotional associations. Admittedly, methodologies may need to be created that do not yet exist to measure the effects of specific spiritual practices, yet existing questionnaires and scales may be of some use and guidance.
In Promoting Mindfulness in African American Communities, the researchers discuss how mindfulness interventions might be used to reduce high incidents of chronic diseases in African Americans due to, among other stressors, economic class, lack of access to healthy foods, and other societal factors. They note challenges to higher representation such as time, location of sessions and transportation. “We also provide additional strategies to guide future mindfulness research that target African Americans” (Biggers et al., 2020). My positive critique centers on the section “Cultural Adaptation of Mindfulness Programs Targeting African Americans.” In my judgment, this discussion is positive in opening the mind to structuring a broader array of mindfulness spiritual practices, including traditions from African American religions. For example, the singing of spirituals and gospel songs can soothe the mind-body. Cultural gatherings celebrating African American art and food are also practices that deepen the sense of connection and belonging. Critical analysis would suggest that research into these practices may reveal healing and lessening of stress, among other positive outcomes including a developed sense of a unitive identity with God or universal oneness, although this study does not directly address this outcome. The challenge, as the authors note, is how to design a methodology to broadly study these and other spiritual practices.
“…it might be useful if new mindfulness-based practices were created specifically with the intention of building the skill of nonreactivity in order to cultivate resilience. “
“There seems to be an important distinction between implementing a mindfulness curriculum that specifically incorporates religion versus employing a more secular approach that is open to discussion of participants’ perceptions of how mindfulness practice may or may not integrate with their own spiritual or religious experiences” (Biggers et al., 2020). The authors suggest that mindfulness instructors consider discussing with participants how the mindfulness practice may or may not align with any religious or spiritual practices they may use. Again, as the previous study noted, is the call for additional research including African Americans. And I would add other social and religious groups as well. Additionally, I advocate methodology identifying, evaluating and quantifying the values that are identified in such spiritual practices.
“There seems to be an important distinction between implementing a mindfulness curriculum that specifically incorporates religion versus employing a more secular approach that is open to discussion of participants’ perceptions of how mindfulness practice may or may not integrate with their own spiritual or religious experiences” (Biggers et al., 2020). The authors suggest that mindfulness instructors consider discussing with participants how the mindfulness practice may or may not align with any religious or spiritual practices they may use. Again, as the previous study noted, is the call for additional research including African Americans. And I would add other social and religious groups as well. Additionally, I advocate methodology identifying, evaluating and quantifying the values that are identified in such spiritual practices.
Finally, in “Healing Racial Injustice with Mindfulness Research, Training, & Practice,” the author takes a big swing and gets a home run in compiling “The Canon,” that celebrates African American contemplative researchers and invites all contemplative researchers to “(1) come together in conversation about race and (2) have an ongoing, personal, body-based practice. In short, show up for conversations about race, and come prepared.” (Laura, 2022). The author notes that reparative contemplative practices are called for, including those that “combine contemplative science with social justice” (Laura, 2022). The paper provides a powerful positive critique and critical analysis of inclusive mindfulness research, methodology strategies and applications across individuals, groups and society. It is imperative that contemplative scientists experiment with a larger range of test designs to target overcoming the biases in existing social behaviors, thought, policy and decision-making. Additional interventions need to be explored that heal a troubled mind. CUE practice (also known as Oppositional Cultural Practice®) is a promising intervention worthy of testing and measuring. My experience has been that the practice opens pathways to creative and courageous integrity for the individual, the group, and society.
The Educating Gossip™
The Educating Gossip is a researcher and spiritual director. They write about how the Clark Unitive Effect bridges contemplative research to contemplative practices, rescuing mindfulness research from the valley of death. Staying positive and advancing the Clark Unitive Effect underscores their writing and life. The frame OWN IT, FEEL IT, LIVE IT, LOVE IT is used to provide a first person narrative, inviting the series reader to critically examine their own beliefs, feel the emotions and effects on the body, live practices that recognize and take care of body, speech and mind; and love generating the energy of mindfulness in every moment.
“That [mindfulness] energy allows us to be aware of what is going on; going on in our bodies, going on in our feelings, going on in our perceptions—in our mind and going on around us, in the world.” Thich Nhat Hanh
References
Biggers, A., Spears, C. A., Sanders, K., Ong, J., Sharp, L. K., & Gerber, B. S. (2020). Promoting mindfulness in African American communities. Mindfulness, 11, 2274-2282.
Campbell, J., & Moyers, B. (1991). The Power of Myth. Anchor.
Clark, K.E., (2024). Are You Being Prepared? Oppositional Cultural Practice, Healing Yourself While Healing the World. In R. D. Williams & D. Y. Ford (Eds.), Healing While Studying: Reflections and Strategies of Healing, Coping, and Liberation of Graduate Students of Minoritized Identities. (In press 2024). Information Age Publishing.
Freligh, C. B., & Debb, S. M. (2019). Nonreactivity and resilience to stress: Gauging the mindfulness of African American college students. Mindfulness, 10, 2302-2311.
Laura, Danielle “Danae”, “Healing Racial Injustice with Mindfulness Research, Training, & Practice” (2022). Mindfulness Studies Theses. 57. https://digitalcommons.lesley.edu/mindfulness_theses/57
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