This talk will describe attentional, emotional and physiological processes modified over the course of three months of full-time training in, and practice of, meditative quiescence (Shamatha) and beneficial aspirations for self and others (loving kindness, compassion, empathetic joy and equanimity). This multidisciplinary longitudinal, randomized wait-list controlled study is known as The Shamatha Project. Scientific measures …
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Moving Together From Colorblindness to ColorInsight: Contemplative Inquiry, Research and Practice in the Work of Transformative Justice
Professor Magee explores intersecting issues of race, racism and U.S. law using mindfulness- and compassion-based practices. Discussing her work across inter-related sub-fields — transformative education, law practice and community-based work for justice — she highlights ways of enhancing collaborations across categories of real and perceived difference using contemplative techniques for teaching, learning and working together …
Practicing Meditation Through Sacred Texts and Prayers
I was introduced to the dharma when I was already a rabbi and a student of Jewish prayer and sacred text. From the beginning, when I received instructions or wisdom teachings from the Buddha dharma, I found myself doing a simulcast into the language that I knew so well, Jewish prayer and Torah. Over the …
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Mindfulness as a novel intervention for improving romantic relationships
Romantic relationship quality declines over time for most couples. In addition, most first marriages end in divorce, and divorce rates have doubled during the past few decades among people over 35. Identifying interventions that improve compassionate love, empathy, and prosocial behavior between romantic partners is thus a critical goal. Our overarching aim is to experimentally …
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Contemplative peacebuilding in Colombia: A contemplative practice-based psychosocial support program for Colombian ex-combatants
Colombia has recently made unprecedented progress towards ending one of the longest armed conflicts in the world, entering a peacebuilding process which includes the reintegration of ex-combatants into society. However, psychosocial support is currently a small though critical component for ex-combatant reintegration. Our project aims to deliver and evaluate a contemplative-practice based psychosocial support program …
From violence and victims to voices and visions: Exploring the power of mindfulness to effect lasting positive change in post-conflict settings in Northern Uganda
Most post-war accounts highlight the vulnerability of females and violence of males; interventions therefore focus on providing relief hand-outs, stripping the populations of any agency. Using Stepping Stones for Peace and Prosperity (StSt4P&P)’s community-based mindfulness techniques grounded in inter-personal neurobiology, this study explores how post-war populations, and males in particular, can develop prosocial and compassionate …
SHAPE JOY: A program to nurture empathic happiness in children through contemplative parenting practices
Young children seem to be wired to notice and enjoy the happy experiences of others, but this tendency to experience “empathic happiness” seems to fade in later childhood when it is replaced by self-doubt, envy, and worry. This process of losing the natural inclination for empathic happiness is exacerbated for some children who become dysregulated …
Using a contemplative conflict resolution intervention to promote teachers’ and youth’s beneficial engagement in controversial discussions and intergroup encounters
Enabling respectful discussion between rival social viewpoints is currently one of humanity’s most important challenges. Powerful socio-psychological barriers, including negative intergroup perceptions, emotions, beliefs and biases, are known to play a crucial role in fueling social conflicts, by increasing intolerance and blame toward the outgroup. A mindfulness-based compassionate conflict engagement intervention, which combines mindfulness, empathy, …
Neurobehavioral effects of prenatal mindfulness training on maternal presence and compassionate love
A large body of research has shown that mindfulness training can improve individual well-being. However, effects on the prosocial qualities expressed in real-life interpersonal relationships are mixed, and the biobehavioral mechanisms underlying such potential effects remain largely unknown. We propose to address this gap by studying how prenatal mindfulness training tailored to focus on family …
Interoception and Contemplative Practice
Organizer Participants Interoception can be broadly defined as the sense of signals originating within the body. As such, interoception is critical for our sense of embodiment, motivation, and well-being. And yet, despite its importance, interoception remains poorly understood within modern science. This paper reviews interdisciplinary perspectives on interoception, with the goal of presenting a unified …
