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Cited by 14Mindfulness and Compassion InterventionsReligion, Spirituality, and PsychologyIndian and Buddhist Studies

The roles and impacts of worldviews in the context of meditation-related challenges

Open access
Lindahl, Jared R., Palitsky, Roman, Cooper, David J., Britton, Willoughby B.·2023·Transcultural Psychiatry
DOI 10.1177/13634615221128679PMC PMC11292974
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Abstract

Previous research has shown that worldviews can serve as a coping response to periods of difficulty or struggle, and worldviews can also change on account of difficulty. This paper investigates the impacts worldviews have on the nature and trajectory of meditation-related challenges, as well as how worldviews change or are impacted by such challenges. The context of meditation-related challenges provided by data from the Varieties of Contemplative Experience research project offers a unique insight into the dynamics between worldviews and meditation. Buddhist meditation practitioners and meditation experts interviewed for the study report how, for some, worldviews can serve as a risk factor impacting the onset and trajectory of meditation-related challenges, while, for others, worldviews (e.g., being given a worldview, applying a worldview, or changing a worldview) were reported as a remedy for mitigating challenging experiences and/or their associated distress. Buddhist meditation practitioners and teachers in the contemporary West are also situated in a cultural context in which religious and scientific worldviews and explanatory frameworks are dually available. Furthermore, the context of “Buddhist modernism” has also promoted a unique configuration in which the theory and practice of Buddhism is presented as being closely compatible with science. We identify and discuss the various impacts that religious and scientific worldviews have on meditation practitioners and meditation teachers who navigate periods of challenge associated with the practice.

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Authors
Lindahl, J. R., Palitsky, R., Cooper, D. J., & Britton, W. B.
Affiliations
Brown University (US)
Corresponding author
Britton, Willoughby B.
ORCID
Venue
Transcultural Psychiatry
Publisher
SAGE Publications
Published
2022-12-07
Volume
60
Issue
4
Pages
637-650
ISSN
  • 1363-4615 (ISSN-L)
  • 1461-7471
DOI
10.1177/13634615221128679
PMC
PMC11292974
OpenAlex
W4310964635
Cited by
14
References
51
Citations by year
2026: 1 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 4 · 2023: 3
FWCI
2.97
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • Transcultural Psychiatry (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Funders
International Research Network for the Study of Science and Belief in Society (Dynamics of Science and Religiosity in the context)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Mindfulness and Compassion Interventions
  • Social Sciences › Health › Religion, Spirituality, and Psychology
  • Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Religious studies › Indian and Buddhist Studies
Keywords
worldview, Buddhist meditation, Buddhist modernism, religious worldview, scientific worldview, coping, worldview change, contemplative experience, distress, science and religion
MeSH terms
Adaptation, Psychological, Buddhism, Humans, Meditation

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