DOCSLIB.ORG

Exploring the Applications of Second-Generation Mindfulness-Based Interventions For

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Exploring the Applications of Second-Generation Mindfulness-Based Interventions For Exploring the Applications of Second-Generation Mindfulness-Based Interventions for Improving Health and Human Functioning: A Mixed-Methods Investigation William Van Gordon, BSc, MSc Psychology Department, Nottingham Trent University, Nottinghamshire, UK, NG1 4BU A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements of Nottingham Trent University for the degree of Doctorate of Psychology December 2017 1 © William Van Gordon, 2017 This work is the intellectual property of the author. You may copy up to 5% of this work for private study, or personal non-commercial research. Any re-use of the information contained within this document should be fully referenced, quoting the author, title, university, degree level, and pagination. Queries or requests for any other use, or if a more substantial copy is required, should be directed to the owner of the Intellectual Property Rights. Recommended citation: Van Gordon, W. (2017). Exploring the Applications of Second-Generation Mindfulness-Based Interventions for Improving Health and Human Functioning: A Mixed-Methods Investigation [PhD Thesis]. Nottingham: Nottingham Trent University. Keywords: Mindfulness, Second-Generation Mindfulness-based Interventions, Meditation, Meditation Awareness Training, Buddhist-Derived Interventions, Mindfulness-Based Interventions, Emptiness, Ontological Addiction, Buddhism, Workaholism, Work Addiction, Sex Addiction, Fibromyalgia, Psychopathology, Job Performance, Civic Engagement, Stress, Anxiety, Randomised Controlled Trial Aspects of this doctoral project received support from: Nottingham Trent University Awake to Wisdom Centre for Meditation and Mindfulness Research 2 Table of Contents Declarations 5 List of Publications 7 List of Tables and Figures 15 List of Abbreviations 16 General Abstract 17 Chapter 1: General Introduction 19 SECTION A. CONTRIBUTION TO THEORY Chapter 2: Mindfulness in mental health: A critical reflection 27 Chapter 3: There is only one mindfulness: Why science and Buddhism 37 need to work together Chapter 4: Towards a second-generation of mindfulness-based interventions 57 Chapter 5: Buddhist emptiness theory: Implications for psychology 63 Chapter 6: Ontological addiction: Classification, etiology, and treatment 87 Chapter 7: Corporate use of mindfulness and authentic spiritual transmission: 115 Competing or compatible ideals? SECTION B. CONTRIBUTION TO RESEARCH Chapter 8 (Studies 1 and 2): Meditation Awareness Training for the treatment of 135 fibromyalgia syndrome: A randomised controlled trial Chapter 9 (Study 3): Meditation Awareness Training for individuals with fibromyalgia 170 syndrome: An interpretative phenomenological analysis of participant’s experiences Chapter 10 (Study 4): Meditation Awareness Training for the treatment of sex addiction: 199 A case study Chapter 11 (Study 5): Meditation Awareness Training for the treatment of workaholism: 225 A controlled trial SECTION C: CONTRIBUTION TO PRACTICE Chapter 12: Mindfulness and the Four Noble Truths 251 Chapter 13: General Conclusion 282 References 289 3 To Professor Mark Griffiths for his inspirational example and ongoing mentorship To my teacher and dearest friend, Dr Edo Shonin To the path of direct awareness, that carries the pure in heart across the ocean of suffering 4 Declaration of Originality I hereby declare that this submission is my own work and that, to the best of my knowledge and belief, it contains no material which has been accepted for the award of any other degree or diploma of a university or other institute of higher learning. Signed: (William Van Gordon) Date: 18th December 2017 Statement of Ethical Compliance All of the studies conducted as part of this doctoral thesis were subject to an in-depth assessment of their ethical implications. Ethical approval for all studies was provided by the Nottingham Trent University College of Business, Law, and Social Sciences Research Ethics Committee. I declare that I have not deviated from the terms of the ethical approval issued by this Committee. Signed: (William Van Gordon) Date: 18th December 2017 5 Author Contribution Statement I confirm that I am responsible for the conception, design, and writing of all chapters included in this thesis. I conducted the literature reviews, designed the research, collected and analysed the data, and prepared the first-draft of each chapter. Some of the empirical and theoretical findings from this thesis have been published in peer-reviewed journals. In such instances, I confirm that I was the primary and corresponding author, and was responsible for responding to reviewers and making any revisions to the paper. Professor Mark Griffiths was the Director of Studies for this doctoral project and his role as co-author on papers submitted for publication involved: (i) making suggestions on the presentation and refinement of the material included in the paper, (ii) providing suggestions for some additional content of the paper (which may or may not be included in the chapters that comprise this doctoral thesis), (iii) providing advice on responding to comments from the journal reviewers and editor, and (iv) providing advice on the selection of a suitable journal to target for publication. The role of any other co-author of a paper based on findings from this doctoral thesis was limited to providing editorial input and commenting on drafts. Two exceptions to this are Thomas Dunn who provided statistical support for the controlled trials and Edo Shonin who conducted an independent audit of findings from specific analytical components. Signed: Signed: William Van Gordon Mark Griffiths (Director of Studies) Date: 18th December 2017 Date: 18th December 2017 6 List of Publications As referred to in the Author Contribution Statement, this PhD thesis resulted in a number of peer-reviewed journal outputs. In the following list of publications, a ‘*’ denotes published works that are largely based on the content (whether in full or in part) of specific chapters included in this PhD thesis. In the case of all published papers designated with a ‘*’, I am the first author. The final published versions of these papers may not exactly replicate the contents of the chapter in this thesis upon which they were originally based. I acknowledge that the copyright of the final version of any published works arising from this doctoral thesis resides with the copyright holder(s) of those works. All other papers shown below (i.e., those not marked with a ‘*’) have been published in connection with this doctoral project, but are more loosely based on the theoretical and/or empirical findings of the thesis. Consequently, in the list of publications that follows, I may or may not be the first author of papers that are not designated with a ‘*’. 7 List of Publications *Van Gordon, W., Shonin, E., Dunn, T., Garcia-Campayo, J., & Griffiths, M. D. (2017). Meditation Awareness Training for the treatment of fibromyalgia: A randomised controlled trial. British Journal of Health Psychology, 22, 186-206. *Van Gordon, W., Shonin, E., Lomas, T., & Griffiths, M. D. (2016). Corporate use of mindfulness and authentic spiritual transmission: Competing or compatible ideals? Mindfulness and Compassion, 1, 75-83. *Van Gordon, W., Shonin, E., & Griffiths, M. D. (2016). Buddhist emptiness theory: Implications for psychology. Psychology of Religion and Spirituality. Advance Online Publication, DOI: 10.1037/rel0000079. *Van Gordon, W., Shonin, E., & Griffiths, M. D. (2016). Meditation Awareness Training for the treatment of sex addiction: A case study. Journal of Behavioral Addiction, 5, 363-372. *Van Gordon, W., Shonin, E., & Griffiths, M. D. (2016). Meditation Awareness Training for individuals with fibromyalgia syndrome: An interpretative phenomenological analysis of participant’s experiences. Mindfulness, 7, 409-419. *Van Gordon, W., Shonin, E., & Griffiths, M. D. (2016). Ontological addiction: Classification, etiology, and treatment. Mindfulness, 7, 660-671. *Van Gordon, W., Shonin, E., Dunn, T., Garcia-Campayo, J., Demarzo, M., & Griffiths, M. D. (2016). Meditation Awareness Training for the treatment of workaholism: A non- randomised controlled trial. Journal of Behavioral Addiction, 6, 212-220. *Van Gordon, W., Shonin, E., & Griffiths, M. (2015). Towards a second-generation of mindfulness-based interventions. Australia and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 49, 591-591. 8 *Van Gordon, W., Shonin, E., & Griffiths, M.D. (2015). Mindfulness in mental health: A critical reflection. Journal of Psychology, Neuropsychiatric Disorders and Brain Stimulation, 1(1), 102. *Van Gordon, W., Shonin, E., Griffiths, M. D., & Singh, N. N. (2015). There is only one mindfulness: Why science and Buddhism need to work together. Mindfulness, 6, 49-56. *Van Gordon, W., Shonin, E., Zangeneh, M., & Griffiths, M. D. (2014). Work-related mental health and job performance: Can mindfulness help? International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction, 12, 129-137. *Van Gordon, W., Shonin, E., Griffiths, M. D., & Singh, N. N. (2015). Mindfulness and the Four Noble Truths. In: E. Shonin, W. Van Gordon, & N. N. Singh (Eds). Buddhist Foundations of Mindfulness (pp. 9-27). New York: Springer. Lomas, T., Etcoff, N., Van Gordon, W., & Shonin, E. (2017). The art of living mindfully: The health-enhancing potential of Zen aesthetic principles. Journal of Religion and Health, Advanced Online Edition, DOI: 10.1007/s10943-017-0446-5. Van Gordon, W., Shonin, E., & García-Campayo, J. (2017). The mandala of the present moment. Mindfulness, Advanced Online
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Buddhism and Non-Violent World: Examining a Buddhist Contribution to Promoting the Principle of Non-Violence and a Culture of Peace
    Volume 8 Number 2 (2014): 122-149 http://www.infactispax.org/journal Buddhism and Non-Violent World: Examining a Buddhist Contribution to Promoting the Principle of Non-Violence and a Culture of Peace Juichiro Tanabe Coventry University [email protected] Introduction This paper examines a Buddhist contribution to promoting the principle of non-violence and culture of peace. The opposition to violence has been one of the cardinal principles of Buddhism, which is stated in the Dhamapada1: “All tremble at violence; all fear death. Seeing others as being like yourself, do not kill or cause others to kill. All tremble at violence; life is dear for all. Seeing others as being like yourself, do not kill or cause others to kill.”2 Further, Buddhism since its beginning has developed the analysis of psychologically-oriented suffering including violence by means of eradication of its cause and achievement of internal serenity3 and this paper 1 Dhamapada is a collection of sayings of the Buddha. 2 Fronsdal, G. (2005). The Dhammapada: A New Translation of the Buddhist Classic with Annotations. Boston: Shambala: 35. 3 Burton, D. (2002). Knowledge and Liberation: Philosophical Ruminations on a Buddhist Conundrum. 122 In Factis Pax Volume 8 Number 2 (2014): 122-146 http://www.infactispax.org/journal explores how the Buddhist analysis of human mind deepens the psychological dynamics of violence and unfolds internal dimension of peace for more humane world. To this end, three sections constitute this paper. The first section expounds the Four Noble Truths doctrine that is the core of Buddhist teaching. Based on the analysis, the second section examines a Buddhist view of dynamics of violence.
    [Show full text]
  • The Aesthetics of Redemption in Fin De Siècle Literature and the Arts
    The Aesthetics of Redemption in fin de siècle Literature and the Arts by Katherine Lynn Fry A thesis submitted in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Centre for Comparative Literature University of Toronto © Copyright by Katherine Lynn Fry 2017 The Aesthetics of Redemption in fin de siècle Literature and the Arts Katherine Lynn Fry Doctor of Philosophy Centre for Comparative Literature University of Toronto 2017 Abstract This dissertation explores a cluster of texts in fin de siècle aestheticism from a Nietzschean perspective, questioning whether their claims about art and life are, at bottom, world-affirming or world-denying. I argue that the aesthetic worldviews of Friedrich Nietzsche, Walter Pater and Oscar Wilde manifest a struggle against Christian (especially Protestant) values, a struggle that, however, periodically and sometimes fatally capitulates to the otherworldliness it seeks to overcome. Chapter 1 delineates the theoretical framework for my investigation. Drawing on the work of Nietzsche and Max Weber, I begin by examining the diverse strains of otherworldliness, some more implicit than others, that run through the aesthetic theories of Arthur Schopenhauer, Richard Wagner, Joris-Karl Huysmans, and Charles Baudelaire. In Chapter 2, I consider the evolution of Nietzsche’s own aesthetic philosophy from his youthful embrace of the Wagnerian Gesamtkunstwerk to his mature view that the Dionysian artist exemplifies the individual who has vanquished all decadent urges to be redeemed from worldly suffering, and is thus able to affirm life through his work. Chapter 3 demonstrates how Pater’s contemplative aestheticism, which originally sets out to counteract the antipathy to the ‘here and now’ associated with ascetic Protestantism, ends up reproducing the hierarchy between the ii temporal world and a more desirable ‘otherworld.’ In the fourth and final chapter, I suggest that Wilde overcomes the otherworldliness of Paterian aestheticism but only by advancing a secularized version of aesthetic incarnation.
    [Show full text]
  • Suffering-Focused Ethics
    Suffering-Focused Ethics Defense and Implications Magnus Vinding Ratio Ethica Ratio Ethica, Copenhagen. Copyright © 2020 Magnus Vinding Parts of this book have previously been published elsewhere by the author. ISBN: 9798624910911 Contents Introduction .............................................. 1 Part I: The Case for Suffering-Focused Ethics 1: Asymmetries Between Happiness and Suffering ................ 13 2: Happiness as the Absence of Suffering ....................... 39 3: Creating Happiness at the Price of Suffering Is Wrong ........... 52 4: The Principle of Sympathy for Intense Suffering ................ 60 5: A Moral Realist Case for Minimizing Extreme Suffering ......... 75 6: Other Arguments for Focusing on Suffering ................... 93 7: Biases Against Focusing on Suffering ....................... 111 8: Objections Against Focusing on Suffering ................... 141 Part II: How Can We Best Reduce Suffering? 9: Uncertainty Is Big ..................................... 185 10: We Should Be Cooperative .............................. 205 11: Non-Human Animals and Expansion of the Moral Circle . 214 12: Promoting Concern for Suffering ......................... 228 13: The Abolitionist Project ................................ 239 14: Reducing S-Risks ..................................... 247 15: Donating to Reduce Suffering ........................... 256 16: Researching the Question ............................... 261 17: The Importance of Self-Investment ....................... 266 18: What You Can Do ...................................
    [Show full text]
  • Selfhood and the Metaphysics of Altruism
    Selfhood and the Metaphysics of Altruism A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE DIVISION OF THE UNIVERSITY OF HAWAI¢I AT MĀNOA IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY IN PHILOSOPHY MAY 2017 By Kevin Perry Maroufkhani Dissertation Committee: Arindam Chakrabarti, Chairperson Ron Bontekoe George Tsai Peter Hershock Sai Bhatawadekar ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I am indebted to my family, particularly, Rosanne Perry, Dariush Maroufkhani, and Roya Dennis for their moral support and stubborn belief that I could accomplish this project despite all the obstacles I created for myself. I would like to acknowledge my chair, Dr. Arindam Chakrabarti, for the breadth and vivacity of his philosophical imagination, which has continued to challenge me, and nudge me out of complacency and inevitable philosophical naps. His analytical rigor, teaching-presence, and facility in world philosophy is a testament to what is possible in the field of global philosophical discourse. I am grateful for the many hours of selfless instruction he provided, and the fertile ideas cultivated in his classrooms. I would like to acknowledge Dr. Ron Bontekoe, who has always challenged me in the true spirit of a philosophical friend. Dr. Bontekoe has been a careful and caring academic advisor, and, in the courses I’ve taken with him, has never let me off the hook. He does not mince words, and because of the background depth he has provided in hermeneutics, biology, and theoretical ethics, he has greatly benefited this project. I would like to acknowledge Dr. Peter Hershock, who continually reminds me that a hermeneutical lens can make or break the credibility, rigor and sensitivity of cross-cultural conversation.
    [Show full text]
  • Acceptance and Mindfulness in Cognitive Behavior Therapy
    Acceptance and Mindfulness in Cognitive Behavior Therapy Understanding and Applying the New Therapies Edited by James D. Herbert Evan M. Forman John Wiley & Sons, Inc. JWBT357-FM_i-x.indd i 10/7/10 2:41:53 PM This book is printed on acid-free paper. ϱ Copyright © 2011 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey. Published simultaneously in Canada. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise, except as permitted under Section 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written permission of the publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, Inc., 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, (978) 750-8400, fax (978) 646-8600, or on the web at www. copyright.com. Requests to the publisher for permission should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030, (201) 748-6011, fax (201) 748-6008. Limit of Liability/Disclaimer of Warranty: While the publisher and author have used their best efforts in preparing this book, they make no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this book and specifically disclaim any implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. No warranty may be created or extended by sales representatives or written sales materials. The advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for your situation.
    [Show full text]
  • Download Issue
    Catholicism and the Future of Medicine 2014 - ISSUE FOUR Contents 2014 - ISSUE FOUR—CATHOLICISM AND THE FUTURE OF MEDICINE Page FEATURE ARTICLES ALLEN J. AKSAMIT JR. — Appendix: Catholicism, the Mayo Clinic, and the Future of Medicine ............... 3 RUTH ASHFIELD — Meeting Suffering .................................................................................................. 14 MARIA SUAREZ HAMM — Accompanying Suffering .............................................................................. 24 DR. JOHN I. LANE — Going Off the Grid: Opportunities in Catholic Medicine ........................................ 31 SARA DEOLA — Who Is the Patient? ..................................................................................................... 37 GLENN W. OLSEN — The Catholic Roots and Changing Anthropology of Western Medicine ................. 42 MICHAEL HANBY — Medicine after the Death of God ........................................................................... 50 EDITORIAL STRATFORD CALDECOTT — Editorial .................................................................................................... 59 Appendix: Catholicism, the Mayo Clinic, and the Future of Medicine ALLEN J. AKSAMIT JR. Medicine as a profession has been regarded since the time of Hippocrates as a vocation rather than an occupation. The values that define this vocation have been referred to as “medical professionalism” (Mueller, 2009). Professionalism, however, takes its root for the Christian physician in the Christian ethic, as a derivation
    [Show full text]
  • The Hedonistic Imperative
    THE HEDONISTIC IMPERATIVE By DAVID PEARCE [HI was written in 1995. Only the later Replies to Objections, added sequentially in Chapter Four, are more recent. For a contemporary outline, see The Abolitionist Project (2007, http://www.abolitionist.com/ ) and Utopian Neuroscience (2008, http://www.superhappiness.com/ ). Chapter Two can safely be skipped or aggressively skimmed even by the analytic philosophers for whom it was primarily intended. It contains a defence of HI on the basis of, first, practical means-ends rationality and, secondly, ethical negative utilitarianism. The instrumental case from means-ends rationality derives from the broad applicability of psychological hedonism. This isn't here construed as a universal law. It's just a trite everyday rule of thumb: we spend a lot of time trying to make ourselves happy. Often we fail. HI achieves what we're striving for with unique efficiency and success. The ethical utilitarian case for HI, on the other hand, rests partly on a conception of how morality can be naturalised consistently with a recognisably scientific account of the nature of the world. Value is here construed as a distinctive - and biologically maximisable - mode of experience. Its subjective texture is coded by a particular type of biomolecular architecture. That architecture can be enriched and extended. Positive value can be maximised. Negative value can eventually be eliminated. Thus HI, it will be claimed, amounts to rather more than one individual's quirky conjectures and value-judgements. The biological program is also our natural destiny. The coming of the pain-free post-Darwinian Era will mark both a major transition in the evolution of life and the moral foundation of any future civilisation.
    [Show full text]
  • The Moral Significance of Empathy
    The Moral Significance of Empathy William Jefferson Department of Philosophy University of Oxford This dissertation is submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Word count: 60,976 Balliol College January 2019 2 Abstract In this thesis, I argue that empathy is morally significant because it plays an important role in informing our moral deliberations. Empathy should be thought of not as an alternative to rational deliberation about how we are to act, but rather as an important input into such deliberation. I focus on exploring what we learn when we empathize with the suffering of another person. Standard epistemic defences of empathy say only that such empathy will give us knowledge of which affective states the suffering person is feeling. I add to those defences by arguing that empathy with a suffering person also gives us additional types of knowledge about the affective states that this person is feeling. Most significantly, I argue that empathizing with a suffering person gives us knowledge of the strength of one of our reasons to help that person. I call this the Normative Epistemic Claim. In chapter 1, I contextualize my approach within the recent philosophical discussion of empathy. In the following chapter, I explore the relationship between empathy and altruism, and argue that there is an unanswered question about how empathy gives rise to altruistic motivation. I suggest that we should answer this question by considering the idea that empathy gives us phenomenal knowledge about the affective states of other people. I defend this idea in chapter 3, where I also relate it to the debate about phenomenal knowledge that has been stimulated by Frank Jackson’s example of Mary, the scientist who comes to see colour for the first time.
    [Show full text]
  • Protology and Eschatology in the Writings of John C. Polkinghorne: a Study of Contrastive Roles of Scripture
    Andrews University Digital Commons @ Andrews University Master's Theses Graduate Research 2012 Protology and Eschatology in the Writings of John C. Polkinghorne: a Study of Contrastive Roles of Scripture H Nicholas De Lima Andrews University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.andrews.edu/theses Part of the Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion Commons Recommended Citation De Lima, H Nicholas, "Protology and Eschatology in the Writings of John C. Polkinghorne: a Study of Contrastive Roles of Scripture" (2012). Master's Theses. 36. https://digitalcommons.andrews.edu/theses/36 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate Research at Digital Commons @ Andrews University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Master's Theses by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ Andrews University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Thank you for your interest in the Andrews University Digital Library of Dissertations and Theses. Please honor the copyright of this document by not duplicating or distributing additional copies in any form without the author’s express written permission. Thanks for your cooperation. ABSTRACT PROTOLOGY AND ESCHATOLOGY IN THE WRITINGS OF JOHN C. POLKINGHORNE: A STUDY OF CONTRASTIVE ROLES OF SCRIPTURE by H. Nicholas De Lima Adviser: John T. Baldwin ABSTRACT OF GRADUATE STUDENT RESEARCH Thesis Andrews University Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary Title: PROTOLOGY AND ESCHATOLOGY IN THE WRITINGS OF JOHN C. POLKINGHORNE: A STUDY OF CONTRASTIVE ROLES OF SCRIPTURE Name of researcher: H. Nicholas De Lima Name and degree of faculty adviser: John T. Baldwin, Ph.D.
    [Show full text]
  • Chapter 3 – the Matter of Bodies and the Paradigm Shifts of Post-Structuralism, Quantum Physics And
    http://www.bethspencer.com/body-as-fiction.html The Body as Fiction / Fiction as a Way of Thinking Phd thesis, Part 1: University of Ballarat, Australia, March 2006 CHAPTER 3 – THE MATTER OF BODIES AND THE PARADIGM SHIFTS OF POST-STRUCTURALISM, QUANTUM PHYSICS AND ECOLOGICAL SPIRITUALITY 28 In his discussion of the possibility of a ‘new politics of truth’ Michel Foucault described truth as ‘a thing of this world…produced only by virtue of multiple forms of constraint.’ 1 Rather than being something that exists outside of power and history, truth is both an effect of power and itself a producer of powerful effects. Each society has its regime of truth, its ‘general politics’ of truth: that is the types of discourse which it accepts and makes function as true; the mechanisms and instances which enable one to distinguish true and false statements, the means by which each is sanctioned; the techniques and procedures accorded value in the acquisition of truth; the status of those who are charged with saying what counts as true. (133) In this chapter I would like to trace a brief history of the epistemological privileging of empiricism and materialism as sanctioned ways of knowing the world and understanding embodiment, and then look at some challenges to this dominant view in the form of quantum physics, spiritual ecology and post-structuralism. In doing so I would like to propose a different ‘political economy’ of truth, and the ways in which these shifts in beliefs and attitudes about bodies and knowledges have influenced my project. The ‘Old Science’: Classical Materialistic Science and ‘Sciencism’ Classical Newtonian or ‘atomistic’ physics is still central to contemporary western medical or ‘allopathic’2 practice, to medical and science journalism, and (hence) to popular notions of science and bodies.
    [Show full text]
  • Intersections of Buddhist Philosophy and Psychological Science: an Exploration of Common and Differential Effects of Meditation
    AN ABSTRACT OF THE THESIS OF Victoria A. Braun for the degree of Master of Arts in Interdisciplinary Studies in Psychology, Psychology, and Philosophy presented on June 10, 2014. Title: Intersections of Buddhist Philosophy and Psychological Science: An Exploration of Common and Differential Effects of Meditation Abstract Approved: John A. Edwards Interweaving perspectives from both social cognitive psychology and Tibetan Buddhism, the present study examined common and differential effects of two styles of meditation: Loving-kindness meditation (LKM) and mindfulness meditation (MM). Psychological theories of construct accessibility postulate that cognitive constructs activated frequently are more readily available for processing stimuli. Researchers in the present experiment propose that individuals practicing LKM chronically activate constructs of a prosocial and compassionate nature. These constructs then become more accessible for processing interpersonal and situational stimuli, thus providing a cognitive mechanism by which the effects of LKM are experienced. Secondarily, researchers sought to investigate the effects of a meditation intervention on individual differences in coping with interpersonal conflict. Conflict coping tends to occur in patterned responses that develop early in life and pervades through adulthood, much like that of attachment styles (Ben-Ari & Hirschberg, 2009). In impact interpersonal conflict coping styles. Researchers hypothesized the effects of LKM specifically would cause meditators to shift to more positive and proactive styles of coping with conflict. Oregon State University (OSU) students participated in an eight-week meditation intervention, where students were randomly assigned to practice LKM or MM. Baseline, during-, and post-intervention self-report and cognitive measures were collected. Hypotheses regarding prosocial construct activation, working memory capacity, interpersonal conflict coping were explored, as well as a battery of self-report measures examining psychological well-being and life satisfaction.
    [Show full text]
  • The Cessation of Suffering and Buddhist Axiology
    Journal of Buddhist Ethics ISSN 1076-9005 http://blogs.dickinson.edu/buddhistethics/ Volume 22, 2015 The Cessation of Suffering and Buddhist Axiology Daniel Breyer Illinois State University Copyright Notice: Digital copies of this work may be made and distributed provided no change is made and no alteration is made to the content. Reproduction in any other format, with the exception of a single copy for private study, requires the written permission of the author. All en- quiries to: [email protected]. The Cessation of Suffering and Buddhist Axiology1 Daniel Breyer 2 Abstract This article examines Buddhist axiology. In section 1, the article argues against the dominant interpretations of what the ultimate good is in Buddhist ethics. In section 2, the article argues for a novel interpretation of Buddhist value theory. This is the Nirodha View, which maintains that for at least the Pāli Buddhist tradition, the cessation of suffering is the sole intrinsic good. In section 3, the ar- ticle responds to objections and briefly suggests that even non-Buddhists should take the Nirodha View seriously. 1 I would like to thank audiences at Illinois State University and St. John’s University, as well as an anonymous referee, for their helpful comments on previous versions of this 2 Department of Philosophy, Illinois State University. Email: [email protected]. 534 Breyer, The Cessation of Suffering and Buddhist Axiology Introduction Axiology is the study of the good. What is good? What makes something good? What is the ultimate good—the summum bonum? In this article, I examine Buddhist axiology while focusing on this final question: What is the ultimate good according to the Buddhist tradition? The Buddhist tradition is of course vast.
    [Show full text]