The widespread use of mindfulness to deal with anxiety, depression and a lack of compassion in schools, workplaces, local governments, health systems and politics is a ‘canary in the coal mine.’ It points to a significant problem in contemporary organizations. But what if the focus of mindfulness courses is wrong? Our research at Aberystwyth University on behavioural insights and policy making reveals that mindfulness can be better targeted at the causes of dysfunctional workplaces and, in doing so, the symptoms start to disappear.
In a series of articles on Transformation, Ron Purser argues that “McMindfulness” may be effective in managing stress but ignores the systems that cause these problems in the first place. Regulating emotions and developing self-compassion may help politicians and their staff be calmer, for example, and as a result to be better at their jobs. But do they go on to address the complex issues of poor government structures and under-resourcing which not only create stress but also contribute to short-sighted decision making, polarisation, and a lack of progress on wicked policy problems like climate change?
Purser accuses mindfulness enthusiasts of suffering from an enormous blindspot: their concern for personal regulation and moment-by-moment attention obscures the larger political and economic frameworks within which contemporary social problems emerge. Our research suggests another blindspot: carrying buddhist and therapeutic practices into institutions without fully understanding the broader issues at play, and hence, potentially serving to sustain a pernicious system.
