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Studies Find Evidence That Meditation Is Demotivating (nytimes.com)
An anonymous reader shares an excerpt from a report written by behavioral scientists Kathleen D. Vohs and Andrew C. Hafenbrack: The practical payoff of mindfulness [meditation] is backed by dozens of studies linking it to job satisfaction, rational thinking and emotional resilience. But on the face of it, mindfulness might seem counterproductive in a workplace setting. To test this hunch, we recently conducted five studies, involving hundreds of people, to see whether there was a tension between mindfulness and motivation. As we report in a forthcoming article in the journal Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, we found strong evidence that meditation is demotivating.
Some of the participants in our studies were trained in a few of the most common mindfulness meditation techniques. They were instructed by a professional meditation coach to focus on their breathing or mentally scan their bodies for physical sensations, being gently reminded throughout that there was no right or wrong way to do the exercise. Other participants were led through a different exercise. Some were encouraged to let their thoughts wander; some were instructed to read the news or write about recent activities they had done. Then we gave everyone a task to do. Among those who had meditated, motivation levels were lower on average. Those people didn't feel as much like working on the assignments, nor did they want to spend as much time or effort to complete them. Meditation was correlated with reduced thoughts about the future and greater feelings of calm and serenity -- states seemingly not conducive to wanting to tackle a work project. The studies also found that meditation "neither benefited nor detracted from a participant's quality of work." Furthermore, Vohs and Hafenbrack found that a financial bonus for outstanding performance did not overcome the demotivating effect of mindfulness. "While the promise of material rewards will always be a useful tool for motivating employees, it is no substitute for internal motivation," the report reads.
Some of the participants in our studies were trained in a few of the most common mindfulness meditation techniques. They were instructed by a professional meditation coach to focus on their breathing or mentally scan their bodies for physical sensations, being gently reminded throughout that there was no right or wrong way to do the exercise. Other participants were led through a different exercise. Some were encouraged to let their thoughts wander; some were instructed to read the news or write about recent activities they had done. Then we gave everyone a task to do. Among those who had meditated, motivation levels were lower on average. Those people didn't feel as much like working on the assignments, nor did they want to spend as much time or effort to complete them. Meditation was correlated with reduced thoughts about the future and greater feelings of calm and serenity -- states seemingly not conducive to wanting to tackle a work project. The studies also found that meditation "neither benefited nor detracted from a participant's quality of work." Furthermore, Vohs and Hafenbrack found that a financial bonus for outstanding performance did not overcome the demotivating effect of mindfulness. "While the promise of material rewards will always be a useful tool for motivating employees, it is no substitute for internal motivation," the report reads.
they just realized that their work assignments weren't very meaningful?
You are now breathing manually.
I think these people just realized the actual value of what they were doing.
Most ACs are not even worth the keystrokes to insult them. Be generically insulted by this and ignored otherwise.
We can't have people being zen about everything instead of stabbing each other in the back and ratting everybody out to Corporate.
... and other pratices of spritiuality and stoicism makes you more chill and less prone to societies rate-race bullshit.
Next up:
Eating healthy has you spend less money at fast-food joints!
Learning a real skill or art has you spend less time watching TV and spending money on pointless tat!
Regular good sex with a cute sweetheart has you spend less money on expensive brand fashion!
News brought to you by CORI - Captain Obvious Research Institute.
We suffer more in our imagination than in reality. - Seneca
The title is total clickbait.
From the article: "Then we tracked everyone’s actual performance on the tasks. Here we found that on average, having meditated neither benefited nor detracted from a participant’s quality of work."
So meditating made them less eager to participate in your study.
"When I first heard Daydream Nation it quite frankly scared the living shit out of me." -- Matthew Stearns
IMHO - Meditation viewed in a vacuum sans underlying Buddhist philosophy is incoherent, but unfortunately common. The Buddha taught that the point of meditation is to achieve awakening, which is done though the reduction of craving and aversion. By reducing ones fear of failure or desire for success one becomes more free from the suffering inexorably associated with fleeting pursuits, though they are arguably the primary drivers of our economic system. Motivation to pursue things that don't really increase your happiness (i.e. working like a dog to please your boss or to avoid feeling like a loser or to buy a Lambo) will dissipate the more one has the focus to see what really matters in life, which is what meditation will lead to if done correctly. Yet again, the NYT misses the point!
When one spends time doing meditation, one can start to see how stupid things are in the world around us. That can be demotivating. BUT, it can also open up new paradigms. Sitting still, doing nothing (except breathing of course), there is a lot of noise in our heads. After a while (time frame indeterminant), the noise subsides and often a clear idea emerges about a path to follow. Such an activity is similar to doing software development when an difficult problem is encountered. Getting away from the problem and maybe taking a quiet walk reveals the source and the solution to the problem.
"Gentlemen, you can't fight in here! This is the War Room!" -- Dr. Strangelove
I find it really hard to call investigations like this 'science' when they're so subjective and impossible to measure in a consistent manner. That's not to say that having numbers helps guarantee that research is 'science'. Look at so-called climate 'science'. Yes, there are numerical measurements of various kinds involved, but they've also been subjected to 'adjustments' that render them untrustworthy. Or these numerical values have been derived in questionable ways, especially for measurements relating to thousands or millions of years ago. Science requires the use of raw, unadjusted, objective numerical measurements in order to be carried out properly.
Let me get this straight - In your view Cosmology is not at all science. Astronomy is not science. Anything that does not have a har number is not science.
Cool definition bro!
The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
Consider that behind understanding there is a certain awareness that puts one outside of the usual human beliefs and activities. There is theology as well as philosophy involved. The great religious leaders are consistent in rejection of this world. Those who strive tend to want more of this world whereas people a bit more advanced seek nothing at all. The temptations of Christ are a huge example with a shocking list of things people most value being described as worthless. Looking at the span of time that has already passed in this universe a human life span is almost zero. How can a thing have value that only exists for a very brief moment? Is advancement in society or living conditions of any value at all? Imagine if people took the instructions of Christ seriously. "Take all that you have and give it unto the poor.". That one sentence would totally destroy the entire structure of this world. Buddha and Lao Tze would teach the same lessons in different ways. Own nothing, seek nothing valued in this world and even more all are part of meditation . When Christ remarked "Pick up your cross and follow me." we are being instructed to make our lives a living crucifiction. By rejecting the desires and values of this world one is open to salvation.
The secret to happiness is to remove false expectations.
first, my background: I've been practicing buddhist meditation for 15 years. I've even lived at temples and completed extensive retreats. I currently live at a temple and practice 2-3 hours 3-4 days a week (permitting) along with my full time job. I am single and not dating (I'm on slashdot...).
Meditation is not a cure all like it hocked in the media. It wont solve your depression or make you less anxious or make you last longer in bed or....
Done with proper guidance and care, both in terms of access to long term practitioners for advice and to medical care in case something unpleasant happens, because it can and probably will eventually, it can be unbelievably beneficial to the practitioner and those surrounding them.
Meditation does however, have a great effect on a ton of stuff. In fact, it addresses the problem that supercedes all other problems, making it something of a cure all for all sorts of ails.
the difference between the statements of meditation doesn't cure anxiety or depression and blah blah blah, and meditation does have a great effect on a ton of stuff, is that meditation deals with how life unfolds moment to moment from an internal perspective (from your perspective, you're the one doing it after all). And when you start to understanding whats REALLY going on moment to moment, and how all of this works, a lot of that painful, negative stuff just stops happening.
That takes many, many years of practice. It may make you a better worker because you're spending less time dealing with internal crap that prevents you from focusing correctly, and it may allow you to see boring things in a new way which isn't painful. But that doesn't necessarily make you fill them out any faster, it just makes you less miserable to all others. So it both does and it doesn't have a giant effect.
It's great that meditation is starting to become more common, but it will never work in the way these corporate people want it to.
Pay no attention to them Buddists, sez the boffin from Catholic U.
I'll bet none of them said they were doing it BEFORE becoming billionaires.