Mindfulness for Diversity and Inclusion

1. Being Mindful of Difference - Exploring the role of mindfulness in the field of diversity, inclusion and intercultural practice Byron LeeMindfulness Teacher & CoachAdded Value Learning

4. Mindful Intercultural Practice The inevitability of ethnocentrism, seeing the world from one’s own cultural standpoint (Triandis, 1990) The need to navigate through cultural complexity through balancing the risk of cultural oversimplification and being overwhelmed by cultural complexities (Ang, 2011) Mindfulness is a foundation practice for cultivating compassion and developing wisdom Mindfulness is a gateway into contemplation, a practice that is present in almost all spiritual practices across the world

5. it is incumbent upon present and future generations of researchers in [positive psychology] to acknowledge the depth and breadth of their roots, as well as to advocate for positive and collaborative application of findings to individuals, groups and communities.(Downey & Chang, 2014, page 11)

6. Research shows mindfulness is linked to: • Improving intercultural communication • Promoting intercultural cooperation • Resolving intercultural conflicts • Reducing stereotyping and stereotyping threat • Working effectively with cultural complexity • A gateway to new ways for diversity education and research

7. Mindfulness, is defined as paying attention to experiences occurring in the present moment, with curiosity, openness and in a nonjudgment and accepting manner (Brown & Ryan, 2003; Kabat-Zinn, 1982) • And has been shown to help us have an increased sensitivity to context and overcome or avoid limited thinking (E. J. Langer & Moldoveanu, 2000).

8. Mindfulness can be described as: • Being in the present moment • Doing things mindfully • Practices to build our capacity to be aware/mindful

9. How do we become more mindful? Mindfulness meditation teaches one to pay attention to and acknowledge both one’s inner experience and the outer world, without necessarily reacting

10. The Liverpool Mindfulness Model. Malinowski, P. (2013). Neural mechanisms of attentional control in mindfulness meditation. Frontiers in Neuroscience, 7, 8

12. Malinowski, P. (2013). Neural mechanisms of attentional control in mindfulness meditation. Frontiers in Neuroscience, 7, 8

13. Malinowski, P. (2013). Neural mechanisms of attentional control in mindfulness meditation. Frontiers in Neuroscience, 7, 8

14. Mindfulness Mindfulness is a state of conscious awareness in which the individual is implicitly aware of the context and content of information. It is a state of openness to novelty in which the individual actively constructs categories and distinctions. Langer, 1992

15. Characteristics of Mindlessness Trapped by categories - The creation of new categories ... is a mindful activity. Mindlessness sets in when we rely too rigidly on categories and distinctions created in the past (old/young, success/failure). Automatic Behaviour - Habit, or the tendency to keep on with behaviour that has been repeated over time. Acting from a single perspective - So often in our lives, we act as though there were only one set of rules. Langer 1989

18. Characteristics of Mindfulness The key qualities of a mindful state of being are: (1) creation of new categories (2) openness to new information; and (3) awareness of more than one perspective.

19. Cultural Intelligence (CQ)Thomas, 2009 CQ

20. Cultural intelligence and mindfulness • Observing our own assumptions, ideas, and emotions rather than being caught in them • Being curious - using all of the senses in perceiving situations, including noticing the other person’s words and behaviours, and tuning in to their values, needs, and intentions • Viewing the situation from several perspectives, that is, with an open mind

21. Cultural intelligence and mindfulness • Attending to the context to aid understanding • Letting go of assumptions and creating new categories, and recategorizing others into a more sophisticated category system • Seeking to connect through empathic understanding

23. Stereotype threat • Attempts to combat stereotypes via thought suppression – only make stereotypes rebound (Devine, 1989) • Quieting the mind and practicing mindfulness aids cognitive functioning (Weger, et al , 2012)

24. The experience of stereotype threat drains available working memory resources (Schmader & Johns, 2003) • mindfulness restores depleted working memory resources • (Chambers et al., 2008; Jha et al., 2010).

25. Stereotype threat can deplete self-regulation, as it is a stressor that triggers a resource-depleting coping response (Inzlicht & Kang, 2010) • Mindfulness improves self-regulation (Baer, 2003; Jimenez, Niles, & Park, 2010)

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28. Increases in mindfulness and self- compassion lead to improved emotional regulation strategies entailing a balanced awareness with one’s ongoing emotional experience, without the need to either suppress or express it Neff, K. D. (2003). The development and validation of a scale to measure self-compassion. Self and Identity, 2, 223–250.

30. When we see distress in others two responses are triggered Empathic concern Personal distress

31. Empathic concern is associated with prosocial behaviour – we act to alleviate another’s suffering • Personal distress is associated with threat responses and minimal action* • *recent studies have shown cultural differences and that Asian people respond with greater personal distress which suggests that these constructs may be influenced by cultural contexts e.g. individualist versus collectivist cultural contexts

32. Suppressing emotions activates the sympathetic nervous system (Gross and Levenson 1997)

33. Diversity relevance of emotional regulation Stereotyping threat Intercultural encounters Cultural conflict Addressing prejudice and discrimination

34. Mindfulness and Cultural Complexity • Intercultural practice • Complex systems

35. (Kluckholm and Murray 1950)

36. ‘the principles of complexity that determine which level comes into the fore and becomes more relevant, and that models that provide a static description of how each of these stages are more important at one time or another are going to miss the dynamic complexity of the crosscultural counseling relationship’ (Leong, 1996 page 203).

37. Integrative model (Leong 1996) Mindfulness enables the practitioner to vigilantly observe the intricate and energetic exchanges taking place within themselves, their clients, and in between. They are aware that their clients, like themselves, operate as complex adaptive systems. Mindfulness provides a meta-framework

38. Mindfulness and Cultural Humility Cultural humility emphasises a lifelong commitment to self-inquiry, an awareness of personal and cultural biases and sensitivity to others (Juarez et al., 2006;Tervalon & Murray-García, 1998) Cultural humility encourage practitioners to listen deeply and be comfortable with being in the present (Coulehan, 2006).

39. Through mindfulness we attend to our internal assumptions, thoughts and feelings whilst simultaneously tuning into the worldview of others, enabling us to enter into a collaborative dialogue, fully present, and ‘inwardly reflexive, and outwardly reflective of identity, relational and content based issues’ (Ting-Toomey, 1999).

40. Mindfulness and Stereotyping Automaticity enables effortless activity without conscious attention, most often leading to learning or mastery (LaBerge & Samuels, 1974) • Automatized cognitive or emotional reactivity can lead to stereotyping and prejudice (Kang et al., 2012) • De-automatization is a key mechanism of mindfulness (Langer, 1989; Moore & Malinowski, 2009).

41. Traditionally approaches to eradicate stereotyping and prejudice have generally concentrated efforts toward the cessation of prejudice and discrimination (Langer, 1989) It is in our nature to categorise our worlds (Brown, 1958)

42. Mindful stereotyping • Mindless stereotyping is characterised by holding rigid views of others, sometimes exaggerated and subject to distortion, and an unwillingness to change the view even when presented with compelling evidence. • Mindful stereotyping promotes open-mindedness, loose interpretations and willingness to adapt categories based on personal intercultural encounters. • Responsive and open communication facilitates mindful stereotyping (Ting-Toomey, 1999).

43. Mindful education and research • Mindful inquiry • Contemplative pedagogy and inquiry

44. Mindful Inquiry • Qualitative research approach formulated by Valerie Bentz and Jeremy Shapiro (1998). Based on four knowledge traditions: • Phenomenology: a description and analysis of consciousness and experience • Hermeneutics: analysis and interpretation of texts in context • Critical Social Theory: analysis of domination and oppression with a view to changing it • Buddhism: spiritual practice that allows one to free oneself from suffering and illusion in several ways, e.g., becoming more aware • (1998, p. 6)

45. What is contemplative Inquiry? • The reflective, contemplative and experiential methods developed within the contemplative traditions offer a complimentary set of research methods for exploring the mind and the world. . . . . . opening up new pathways for deepening and enlarging perspectives which can lead to real and lasting solutions to the problems we confront. Arthur Zajonc

48. Cultural Intelligence and Unconscious Bias: The role of Inclusive leadershipByron Lee