Date of Award

5-2018

Thesis Date

5-2018

Degree Type

Honors Thesis-Unrestricted

Degree Name

B.S.

Department

Psychology

Degree Program

Psychology

Director

Jess Matherne

Abstract

Originally derived from Eastern religions, the concept of mindfulness has been adapted and validated by psychology and medical science within recent decades. This project describes some of the religious viewpoints associated with mindfulness and its related practices, such as meditation. The primary focus however, are the forays into scientific study using validated methodology to understand what mindfulness can and cannot affect as it relates to physical and mental health. The initial studies serve as proof of concept and cover simple reductions in symptomology and suffering for conditions like anxiety and depression. The scope of mindfulness application grew as research progressed, leading to more focused studies involving the extreme stress of medical students, the lifespan of the elderly, and autobiographical memory for those in remission who had depression. Like all respectable scientific experimentation, having the ability to quantify the results and observations seen is accounted for by these studies. Furthermore, a cohesive model and adapted measurement scale are discussed to denote the clout carried by mindfulness and related practices. In closing, discussion of current research directions are given along with a re-emphasis of conclusions established in the literature.

Rights

The University of New Orleans and its agents retain the non-exclusive license to archive and make accessible this honors thesis in whole or part in all forms of media, now or hereafter known. The author retains all other ownership rights to the copyright of the honors thesis.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License

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