The Power of Gratitude

In a society where negativity often predominates and entire conversations centre around complaints, the experience of gratitude, an awareness and appreciation of the good things that happen, is refreshing and grounding. However, with the negativity bias, the human tendency to notice, remember and pay attention to the negative much more quickly than the positive (Baumeister, Bratslavsky, Finkenauer, & Vohs, 2001), gratitude requires conscious effort to rewire habitual patterns of thinking. Luckily, positive psychology research has empirically validated certain techniques, showing that "counting your blessings" is no longer a platitude, but a tried-and-tested way of enhancing your wellbeing and positive emotion.

Why be grateful?

Individual differences in gratitude have been linked with subjective well-being (high positive affect, low negative affect, and high life satisfaction) in 12 studies (as reviewed by Wood, Froh, & Geraghty, 2010). Wood, Joseph, and Maltby (2008) also found that gratitude predicts psychological well-being (autonomy, environmental mastery, personal growth, positive relationships, purpose in life, and self-acceptance) above the effect of the Big Five personality traits. Furthermore, gratitude has also been negatively associated with depression (e.g. Wood, Maltby, Gillett, Linley, & Joseph, 2008), perhaps because positive life orientation is incompatible with the negative cognitive biases associated with depression. Gratitude is also related to perceived quality of relationships, forgiveness, low narcissism, greater perceived social support, relationship connection and satisfaction, conflict resolution and reciprocally helpful behaviour (as reviewed by Wood, Froh, & Geraghty, 2010). Finally, gratitude improves your quality of sleep (Wood, Joseph, Lloyd, & Atkins, 2009), as grateful people are more likely to think about positive things as they are falling asleep, promoting sleep quality, instead of negative thoughts that impair sleep (Nelson & Harvey, 2003).

Not currently oriented towards gratitude? Not a problem at all - gratitude is a skill that everyone can develop, and that's where gratitude interventions come in! These are exercises specifically designed to increase your levels of gratitude, changes that can persist through practice. Indeed, Emmons and McCullough (2003) found that participants who were asked to reflect on five things they were grateful for in the past week, over 9 weeks, had more positive and optimistic appraisals of their life, fewer physical symptoms, higher levels of positive affect and lower levels of negative affect, were more likely to offer emotion support to others, had better sleep quality, and a sense of connectedness to others. Similarly, Seligman, Steen, Park, Nansook, and Peterson (2005) asked participants to write down three things that well well each day and their causes every night for one week. These 411 participants experienced increased happiness and decreased depressive symptoms, with the effect lasting for six months after the intervention. Seligman et al. (2005) also found that participants who were instructed to go on a "gratitude visit", where one writes a letter to someone they are grateful to, and reads it out to them in person, reported increased happiness and decreased depression both at the immediate post-test and at the 1 month follow-up. For these reasons, gratitude interventions are seen as the most successful psychology interventions yet.

The exercises...and some reflections

The exercises themselves are deceptively simple, but as pointed out above, are effective. Here are the basic steps:

What went well (WWW)? 

Try this for a week (or more!):

1. Write down three things that went well with your day. These can be mundane (e.g. "The sun was shining today") or important (e.g. "I got a new job!").
2. For each of these things, answer the question, "Why did this happen?" (e.g. "Because Spring is coming!"; "I worked hard to prepare for the interview").

Easy, right? Extending this into daily life, I've decided to start asking people WWW? more often, instead of the typical "How's it going/How was your day?". So far, there have been interesting responses. When I asked a group of peers at lunch the other day, they kinda looked a bit baffled, before responding along the lines of not being able to think of anything, or "nothing much", or even "nothing at all". Another friend thought that it was a nice question to ask. Recently, and more positively, one friend thought it was "kinda touching", because she felt that asking WWW instead of the standard "how are you" shows that you care, and also that it reminded her that things actually did go well that day, despite it being a difficult day. For the most part though, people are taken by surprise when they are asked this question. For me, this just illustrates the negativity bias. I bet you, if I had asked, "What went wrong today?", the response time would have been far quicker, and people would have thought of many more things to complain about. The threshold of activation seems far higher for positive events than negative events, as even minor annoyances seem to be remembered more readily than even relatively major positive events. However, any change in attitudes or norms takes repetition (and education), so I'll keep trying!

The Gratitude Visit 

People like to be thanked, but tend to be under-appreciated. It means something special to people when they are recognised for their efforts, to know that they are valued. So here's my challenge to you:

1. Think of a person in your past who has benefited you in some way and who you have not properly thanked.
2. Write them a gratitude letter, expressing your thanks and appreciation for what they have done for you. Be as specific as you can, and try to illustrate just what impact they have made in your life. Aim for around 1/2 a page to one page of text.
3. Make a time to visit the person, but don't say what the visit is about. (If the person is overseas or interstate, Skype is ok, but probably not the phone)
4. Visit the person and read the letter out loud to them. Read it slowly and mindfully, with meaning, intent, and eye contact. 
5. Give the person time to respond to the reading. This will be probably be a highly emotional experience for them.
6. Optional, but a highly likely outcome: Hug them! :)

I personally tried this out last week (I would be a hypocrite if I was writing this and I hadn't done it myself!), and thought I'd share a few reflections, which will be a bit unspecific when talking about the reactions of the person I thanked as I guess it is a personal experience in a way. 

I'll admit it, despite being in the habit of writing thank you letters and telling people I appreciate them, I felt quite a bit of aversion to the idea of actually reading a whole letter out loud to the person. To be honest, it took me awhile to think of exactly who I would write my letter to, but once I did, it made complete sense to thank them for what they had done for me. Writing out the letter helped me to further clarify exactly what I was grateful to them for, and enhanced my sense of appreciation for what they had done. It was actually quite a profound realisation. 

Before visiting her, I felt slightly nervous and awkward, but mildly excited. When I told her I had written a thank you letter and would like to read it out loud to them, she was surprised but went along with it. The actual reading felt really natural and authentic. Afterwards, she was clearly touched, and teary, and had realised the difference she had made in my life. There were smiles all around and a great sense of connectedness, understanding, and of course, gratitude, for both of us.

Immediately post-visit, I felt enthused, excited, and just plain HAPPY that I had helped her feel appreciated and valued. I felt connected and peaceful, and motivated to spread more kindness. I also took the Positive and Negative Affect Scale (PANAS) questionnaire online at the Authentic Happiness website (it's free!) the night before and immediately after the visit, and my positive affectivity had increased from 23/50 (~30th percentile of respondents) to 36/50 (~80th percentile), while my negative affectivity remained stable (11/50, minimum = 10). While that was probably rather unscientific as I was tired the night before, the subjective experience of increased positive emotion was undeniable.

In the end, the visit reminded me of how important it is to tell people you appreciate them, and how much it means to them. It also taught me that it is important to have the courage to SAY THESE THINGS. You will not be ridiculed or rejected or embarrassed. You will make someone's day, touch their hearts, and help them feel like they matter. This is the beautiful thing about positive psychology - it not only enhances individual wellbeing; it enhances the wellbeing of those around you too, contributing to the flourishing of whole communities.

Conclusion

A growing scientific knowledge base is showing that cultivating gratitude could be one of the most important things you can do to not only insure yourself against mental illness, but to support your overall wellbeing and flourishing. Granted, this requires active, intentional effort to overcome the negativity bias and focus on what you do have (vs. what is missing in your life), what has gone well (vs. what went wrong), and the good in others (vs. what's wrong with others). However, if you can achieve this subtle shift in mindset as often as you can, the most likely outcome is increased happiness and flourishing for you, as well as for those around you. The power of gratitude is in your hands.

Try it out!

What went well for you today, or this week? Would you go on a gratitude visit? If not, what's holding you back? Let me know in the comments!

References

Baumeister, R. F., Bratslavsky, E., Finkenauer, C.,, & Vohs, K. D. (2001). Bad is stronger than good. Review of General Psychology, 5(4), 323-370.

Emmons, R. A., & McCullough, M. E. (2003). Counting Blessings Versus Burdens: An Experimental Investigation of Gratitude and Subjective Well-Being in Daily Life. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 8(2), 377-389.

Nelson, J., & Harvey, A. G. (2003). An exploration of pre-sleep cognitive activity in insomnia: Imagery and verbal thought. British Journal of Clinical Psychology, 42, 271-288.

Seligman, M. E., Steen, T. A., Park, N., & Peterson, C. (2005). Positive Psychology Progress: Empirical Validation of Interventions. American Psychologist, 60(5), 410-421.

Wood, A. M., Froh, J. J., & Geraghty, A. W. (2010). Gratitude and well-being: A review and theoretical integration. Clinical Psychology Review, 30(7), 890-905.

Wood, A. M., Joseph, S., Lloyd, J., & Atkins, S. (2009). Gratitude influences sleep through the mechanism of pre-sleep cognitions. Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 66, 43-48.

Wood, A. M., Linley, P. A., Maltby, J., Baliousis, M., & Joseph, S. (2008). The authentic personality: A theoretical and empirical conceptualization, and the development of the Authenticity Scale. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 55, 385-399.

The Mindful Way Through Exams

What do you associate with the word, "exams"? Stress? Work? Pressure? Tunnel-vision? I think these are some fairly common conceptions of what exam periods usually look like. However, I also believe that this is not an inevitable fate. While it is usually true that exam preparation involves increased demands of our physical and mental resources, I hope to explain here how mindfulness can be a particularly effective buffer against psychological stress. By studying with intention, starting or maintaining a formal practice, taking mindful breaks and maintaining a mindful attitude, exams can be a period of focused learning that remains simply another aspect of your life, rather than an all-consuming stressful experience.

Conscious Studying

Mindfulness, as the art of conscious living, applies to any area of life. This includes approaching study with purpose and intention.

Compare these illustrative examples:

Mindless Studying

• Pseudo-studying
• Studying with Facebook and your work open in two windows side-by-side and your phone next to you
• Studying while watching TV
• Autopilot studying
• Indiscriminately revising all content regardless of how well you already know it
• Passively reading/flipping through the textbook
• Copying your notes over and over again
• Punitive studying
• Locking yourself in the library (or your room) from 8am-12am with a 6-pack of Red Bull and no breaks

Conscious Studying 

• Reviewing flash cards with a spaced repetition function so you only study relatively unfamiliar content
• Making mind-maps to summarise and integrate your subject
• Practicing problem sets and past exams
• Practicing writing essays in exam conditions
• Splitting up your final essay into clearly defined stages with time limits:
• Find XX relevant sources (4 hours)
• Compile relevant evidence, with citations, from the sources in one document under headings of the topics you may want to address (3 hours)
• Given your research, rethink the structure of your essay and come up with a possible argument (2 hours)
• Write paragraph 1
• Write paragraph 2
• etc...
• After leaving for a day or two, edit for structure
• Edit for spelling/grammar
• Final sanity edit

Conscious studying is simply a more effective approach; by cutting out the distractions and being more specific about what you want to achieve, you get more done in less time and with less pain.

Formal Practice

Exams is as good a time as any to establish a formal practice. After all, mindfulness is associated with reduced anxiety and stress (Hofmann, Sawyer, Witt, & Oh, 2010; Evans et al., 2007), and increased working memory capacity and sustained attention (Chambers, Lo, & Allen, 2008). 

Apart from these performance-related benefits, mindfulness meditation can support your general sense of wellbeing. In a time when we are probably relatively focused on getting stuff done, taking 5 or 10 minutes to simply be with the breath brings you back to the present, helps you get back in touch with yourself, cultivates a sense of peace, and reduces perceived time pressure, when you realise that taking a few minutes to just be won't kill your study schedule.

So how do you do it?

Find a time that works for you. It may be first thing in the morning, last thing at night, or before dinner, for example.

There are a variety of possible practices, including mindfulness of the breath, mindfulness of the body, mindfulness of sounds and thoughts, and the body scan. I'll just provide the instructions for mindfulness of the breath here (repeated from Mindfulness in a Nutshell). However, you can easily substitute "sensations of the breath" for the sensation of your body as a whole, for sounds in the environment, or for an awareness of your thought-stream. The basic idea of mindfulness is to choose an object of attention and to constantly bring your attention back to it.

1. Sit upright with wakefulness and dignity
2. Bring your attention to the sensations of the breath in the belly or nostrils, or wherever else you can feel the breath. Stick with this location for the session.
3. Feel the full duration of each in-breath and each out-breath.
4. When you notice that your mind is no longer on the breath (this is inevitable!), notice what is on your mind in that moment, and let it go, then escort your attention back to the breath.

Mindful Breaks

Even if you choose not to establish a formal practice, mindfulness can be an effective practice during study breaks. When we are studying, often we get wrapped up in the content and the learning, and in doing so, lose touch with the external world outside of our laptops or textbooks, and with ourselves. The 3-minute breathing space is a good exercise for bringing you back to the present moment, noticing everything else that is in it, including your own mental and physical state, that you have possibly been ignoring while studying. It's a good idea to study for perhaps 50 minutes before taking a 10 minute break, including a breathing space (or perhaps 25 minutes, then a 5 minutes break). An even simpler alternative for a mindful break is to just bring your attention to your breath for one minute.

Here are the instructions (again, repeated from Mindfulness in a Nutshell).

1. Awareness: Bring yourself into the present moment, asking yourself, “What is my experience right now…in thoughts…in feelings…and in bodily sensations?” Acknowledge and register your experience, even if it is unwanted.
2. Gathering: Gently redirect full attention to breathing, to each in-breath and to each out-breath as they follow, one after the other.
3. Expanding: Expand the field of your awareness around your breathing, so that it includes a sense of the body as a whole, your posture, and facial expression.

Stop! Try it now - go on, it'll only take 3 minutes!

Mindful Attitudes

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, mindful attitudes can help maintain a healthy and balanced mindset during exams.

Non-judging. Notice the tendency of the mind to label experiences as good or bad, to like or dislike. For example, you may be finding some aspects of study "boring", or feel aversion towards stressful thoughts and feelings, or label yourself as "dumb" if you don't get something, or "lazy" for procrastinating. Simply observe this judging tendency when it arises, without necessarily trying to change it. This is about developing an acceptance of your experiences, even if they are unwanted, and being gentle with yourself.

Acceptance. Seeing things as they actually are in the present, not how you would like them to be. This might involve noting that you are seriously behind on your study schedule, adjusting it, and moving on, rather than freaking out (reacting) or pretending it's all ok (denial). After an exam, this involves recognising that what has happened has happened, and letting go, without ruminating on it any further.

Beginner's Mind. A mind that is free from expectations and receptive to the unique possibilities in every moment. What happened yesterday and the day before has already happened. Whether it was productive or filled with setbacks, each day is a new day, and expectations either way can lead to disappointment. Approach each day with a fresh mind, ready to learn and tackle any problems that come up.

Trust. Everyone has their own way. You know your learning style best, so balance external guidance with a trust in your own basic wisdom and intuition.

Non-striving. Mindfulness is not about trying to get anywhere, because you are already here. This may sound like a completely bizarre attitude to invoke when it comes to exam preparation. After all, preparation, by definition, involves trying to achieve things (as was apparent in the Conscious Studying section). However, if you approach exam preparation with the idea that you need to get a certain amount of stuff done, or achieve a certain grade, then you've introduced the notion into your mind that you're not ok as you are. Thus, as paradoxial as it seems, it is worth balancing these goals with a realisation that your goals are not you, and that as long as you are breathing, there is more right with you than wrong with you.

Conclusion

Through a combination of a conscious approach to studying, formal practice, mindful breaks and mindful attitudes, mindfulness can help you to maintain balance and perspective during exams. It's a way that is not only effective, but more importantly, encourages you to be realistic, gentle with yourself, and to stay in touch with the present moment and therefore with life, which doesn't stop for exams!

References

• Chambers, R., Lo., C., & Allen, N. B. (2008). The impact of intensive mindfulness training on executive cognition, cognitive style, and affect. Cognitive Therapy and Research, 32, 303-322.
• Evans, S., Ferrando, S., Findler, M., Stowell, C., Smart, C., & Haglin, D. (2008). Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for generalized anxiety disorder. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 22(4), 716-721.
• Hofmann, S. G., Sawyer, A. T., Witt, A. A., & Oh, D. (2010). The effect of mindfulness-based therapy on anxiety and depression: A meta-analytic review. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 78(2), 169-183.

Mindfulness in a Nutshell

What exactly is "mindfulness", the theme of this blog? Why be mindful? How can mindfulness be developed? I aim to provide a brief introduction to these topics here.

What is mindfulness?

Mindfulness is the art of conscious living. This involves a mode of being that involves non-judgemental awareness of the present moment (Kabat-Zinn, 2003), allowing us to wake up, reconnect with ourselves and with the world, and to appreciate the richness of every moment. 

1. Present moment: Noticing whatever is actually here, right here, right now. Not what happened yesterday, or what you need to do tomorrow, or where you would like to be...but allowing yourself to fully experience what is already here. This could involve the breath, bodily sensations, sounds, thoughts, or a "choiceless awareness" of any aspect of the present moment.
2. Awareness: Paying attention. This is an active process of continually bringing your attention back to what you are observing in the present moment whenever your mind gets carried away. In this sense, mindfulness involves mastery of the mind, the opposite of mindlessness.
3. Non-judgemental: Accepting, embracing, and remaining equanimous to those present-moment experiences that you are paying attention to. Taking a break from liking and disliking, and instead, simply noticing whatever is here and allowing it to be.

Why be mindful?

Mindfulness is based on an awareness that we literally only have moments to live. We spend much of our time thinking, planning and worrying about the future, or regretting and ruminating about the past. Each time our mind wanders from where we are in the present moment, we reduce our ability to fully experience and appreciate the present moment. By bringing our awareness back into this present moment, right here, right now, we can really live life in its full richness.

Therefore, by cultivating an accepting, non-judgemental attitude, and a mind that is able to both stay and see things as they are in the present moment, mindfulness has the potential to reduce the impact and influence of stressful thoughts and feelings, to promote balance, calm and peace, and emotional stability, and to develop self-acceptance and self-compassion.

In Western psychology, there has recently been an explosion of interest in mindfulness. It's no wonder why, when you consider the promising results of studies so far, which have linked mindfulness with reduction in anxiety and mood problems (Hofmann, Sawyer, Witt, & Oh, 2010; Evans et al., 2007), increased left-sided anterior brain activation (associated with positive emotions) and improved immune function (Davidson et al., 2003), reduced size of amygdala (involved in stress responses) and significantly reduced perceived stress (Hölzel et al., 2010), and improvements in self-reported depressive symptomatology, negative affect, working memory capacity, and sustained attention (Chambers, Lo, & Allen, 2008).

Given all of these likely benefits, it seems fair to conclude that mindfulness has a real potential to promote peace, wellbeing and health.

How is it developed? 

Mindfulness can be developed through both "formal" and "informal" practice.

Formal practice can involve sitting practices, such as mindfulness of the breath, mindfulness of the body, and mindfulness of sounds and thoughts. It can also involve a body scan, lying down. Alternatively, walking meditation is a suitable practice for those who don't like the idea of sitting or lying still.

10 minutes a day is a good place to start, and even 5 minutes a day can make a difference.

Here are some basic instructions for mindfulness of the breath and mindfulness of the body:


Mindfulness of the Breath

Breath is life. Mindfulness helps us to get in touch with the breath and how it changes with our moods, and to recognise how precious it is to be breathing.

1. Sit upright with wakefulness and dignity
2. Bring your attention to the sensations of the breath in the belly or nostrils, or wherever else you can feel the breath. Stick with this location for the session.
3. Feel the full duration of each in-breath and each out-breath.
4. When you notice that your mind is no longer on the breath (this is inevitable!), notice what is on your mind in that moment, and let it go, then escort your attention back to the breath.

Mindful Walking 

Bring your full awareness to the sensations of walking, noticing:

• The physical sensations of the contact of the feet with the ground
• The weight of your body transmitted through your legs and feet to the ground
• The changing patterns of physical sensations in the legs and feet as you transfer the weight of the body into each leg
• The movements of the body as it changes direction

You may like to start by walking at a pace that is slower than usual, and try faster speeds later.

Informal practice, which involves bringing mindfulness into everyday life, is just as important, and possibly even moreso, than formal practice. This is because the point of formal practice is to be able to bring mindful awareness into daily life, to bring the being into the doing. Here are a couple of suggestions:

Mindfulness of Everyday Activities 

Choose a routine activity in your daily life (e.g. brushing your teeth, showering, getting dressed, eating) and make a deliberate effort to bring moment-to-moment awareness to that activity each time you do it. Simply focus on knowing what you are doing as you are actually doing it.

3-Minute Breathing Space 

The breathing space provides a way to step out of “automatic pilot” and reconnect with the present moment.

1. Awareness: Bring yourself into the present moment, asking yourself, “What is my experience right now…in thoughts…in feelings…and in bodily sensations?” Acknowledge and register your experience, even if it is unwanted.
2. Gathering: Gently redirect full attention to breathing, to each in-breath and to each out-breath as they follow, one after the other.
3. Expanding: Expand the field of your awareness around your breathing, so that it includes a sense of the body as a whole, your posture, and facial expression.

Conclusion

Jon Kabat-Zinn's statement, "Mindfulness is about living life as if it really mattered," is an apt summary of what mindfulness is and why we should be mindful. Every moment is fragile and precious, and if we value life, then we need to be here to experience it. There are compelling reasons to believe that this way of existence is beneficial for us on psychological, medical, social and spiritual levels. It is exciting that Western medicine and psychology are finally recognising and validating the benefits of mindfulness, and I am looking forward to learning from, and hopefully contributing to, future research.

References 

• Chambers, R., Lo., C., & Allen, N. B. (2008). The impact of intensive mindfulness training on executive cognition, cognitive style, and affect. Cognitive Therapy and Research, 32, 303-322.
• Davidson, R. J., Kabat-Zinn, J., Schumacher, J., Rosenkranz, M., Muller, D., Santorelli, S., et al. (2003). Alterations in Brain and Immune Function Produced by Mindfulness Meditation. Psychosomatic Medicine, 65, 564-570.
• Evans, S., Ferrando, S., Findler, M., Stowell, C., Smart, C., & Haglin, D. (2008). Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for generalized anxiety disorder. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 22(4), 716-721.
• Hofmann, S. G., Sawyer, A. T., Witt, A. A., & Oh, D. (2010). The effect of mindfulness-based therapy on anxiety and depression: A meta-analytic review. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 78(2), 169-183.
• Hölzel, B.K., Carmody, J., Evans, K.C., Hoge, E.A., Dusek, J.A., Morgan, L... Lazar, S.W. (2010). Stress reduction correlates with structural changes in the amygdala. Social Cognitive & Affective Neuroscience, 5(1), 11-17.
• Kabat-Zinn, J. (2003). Mindfulness-based interventions in context - Past, present and future. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice, 10(2), 144-156.

Mindfulness and Engagement: Lessons from Social Psychology

Two weeks ago, I attended a public lecture at the University of Melbourne, "Beyond Pleasure and Pain: Value from Engagement", where the notable Professor E Tory Higgins from Columbia University presented his theory of motivation. He proposed that there is more to the story of motivation than simply hedonic pleasure and pain, or the "carrot and stick" layman conception. While pleasure and pain determine the direction of the experience of value as positive or negative, strength of engagement intensifies these forces of attraction and repulsion, making life more "alive".

Sources of engagement include: (1) regulatory fit between the orientation and the manner of goal pursuit; (2) using the right or proper means of goal pursuit; (3) opposing something that interferes with the goal pursuit; and (4) experiencing an upcoming event (relevant to the current goal pursuit) as being real because of its high expressed likelihood.

He only had time to talk a bit about the first two sources, though, which I'll describe here. I'll also explain the relevance of this theory to mindfulness.

1. Regulatory fit

Regulatory fit occurs when, given a current orientation, the manner of goal pursuit "sustains" the orientation. It strengthens engagement by making what you are doing "feel right".

For example, those who have a promotion focus are focused on aspirations, advancement, accomplishments, gains, and moving from "0" to "+1". Eager strategies fit promotion. In contrast, those who hold a prevention focus are focused on responsibilities, safety, security, non-losses, stopping movement from "0" to "-1". Vigilant strategies fit prevention.

Prof. Higgins described his study (Higgins, Idson, Freitas, Spiegel, & Molden, 2003) where participants were measured on their habitual orientation to pursuing goals (promotion or prevention). They were then asked to choose between a mug and a pen. Following this, half of the participants were told to think about what they would gain by choosing the mug or the pen (an eager strategy), and the other half were told to think about what they would lose by not choosing the mug or the pen (a vigilant strategy). Participants who chose the mug were shown an envelope containing the price of the mug, and were asked to offer a price, with their own money, to purchase the mug. If the price was higher or equal to the amount in the mug, they would get the mug for the price they offered, otherwise they would not get the mug. Participants with good regulatory fit in the Promotion + Eagerness and the Prevention + Vigilant conditions offered around $4.70. However, participants offered significantly less money, around $3, for the mug when they were in conditions with poor regulatory fit; the Promotion + Vigilant and Prevention + Eager conditions. This provided support for the hypothesis that regulatory fit enhances perception of value.

In the lecture, Prof. Higgins discussed the practical implications, aside from marketing. In education and work, it's a common notion that the way to motivate children, students and subordinates, is to add pleasure to whatever they're doing. However, if fit is more important, this strategy could be mistaken. Higgins argues that adding reward is adding extrinsic motivation to the task, which undermines intrinsic motivation. People feel like they are now doing a task "in order to...".  Similarly, adding a "fun orientation" to an important task can actually make it a non-fit, reducing engagement and therefore motivation.

In this light, it makes sense that if meditation is an important undertaking (which I believe it is), then perhaps engagement is enhanced when the practice is pursued in ways that enforce this "seriousness". For example, I have a dedicated clutter-free area in my room for meditating, it is (generally) the first thing I do upon waking - it's something I wake up early for - and the last thing I do at night, and I keep track of my practice to stay accountable for it.

2. Use of proper means

Use of proper means is all about feeling like you are doing things the right way (although this doesn't necessarily have to be in an ethical or moral sense). In another study (Higgins, Camacho, Idson, Spiegal, & Scholer, 2008), participants who were manipulated to make decisions the right way ("You need to make your decision in the right way. The right way is to make a decision is to think about which choice has the better consequences") offered a higher price for a mug, $6.35, than those who were directed to make decisions focusing on the best choice ("The best choice is the choice with the better consequences"), $2.61, but this effect only applied to those who were strongly orientated towards doing things the right way.

So what does it mean to live a life the right way? Well, religious and political belief systems tell the believer which activities are proper to do each day, and carrying out these daily proper activities will strengthen engagement in what they are doing. Similarly, other world views or lifestyle choices such as vegetarianism, veganism, or being environmentally-conscious, just to name a few, are based on a belief that these choices represent the right way to live.

Finally, and most relevant to this blog, I asked Prof. Higgins a question about whether engagement would only be strengthened while specific activities were being carried out in the proper way, or whether it would strengthen engagement in life in general. He responded by saying that it would probably be the latter - and brought in the example of meditation, which was exactly what I had in mind! After all, mindfulness practitioners really do believe that living life mindfully, with moment-to-moment non-judgemental awareness, is the right way to live, intensifying the experiences of life through increased purpose, attention and awareness. This awareness isn't limited to the meditation cushion - while we engage in life in formal practice, the point is to try and bring this awareness and engagement to experiences in every moment of everyday life.

I left the lecture feeling truly inspired, with a new perspective on motivation and the purpose of mindfulness. On a larger scale though, research like this really helps to clarify misconceptions about human psychology and motivation, to point us in a direction that really helps us to get more out of life.

If you found this interesting, the public lecture is available for public listening (audio only) here.

References 

Higgins, E. T., Idson, L. C., Freitas, A. L., Spiegel, S., & Molden, D. C. (2003). Transfer of Value From Fit. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 84(6), 1140-1153. doi: 10.1037/0022-3514.84.6.1140

Higgins, E. T., Camacho, C. J., Idson, L. C., Spiegel, S., & Scholer, A. A. (2008). How Making the Same Decision in a "Proper Way" Creates Value. Social Cognition, 26(5), 496-514. doi: 10.1521/soco.2008.26.5.496