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Minding the Mechanisms: A Discussion of How Mindfulness Leads to Positive Outcomes at Work

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  17 December 2015

Dexter Miksch ,
Meghan I. H. Lindeman  and
Lebena Varghese
Dexter Miksch*
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, Northern Illinois University
Meghan I. H. Lindeman
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, Northern Illinois University
Lebena Varghese
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, Northern Illinois University
*
Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Dexter Miksch, Department of Psychology, Northern Illinois University, Dekalb, IL 60115. E-mail: [email protected]
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Extract

Hyland, Lee, and Mills (2015) asserted that the many benefits of mindfulness practices have been underutilized and understudied at work. We agree with the focal article's stance that more research is needed on mindfulness at work. We extend this argument to include a request that future research pays attention to the mechanisms responsible for the effects of mindfulness at work. In this commentary, we (a) briefly discuss the practical importance of understanding the mechanisms by which mindfulness practices lead to positive outcomes, (b) outline the mediating mechanisms proposed by the leading theoretical model of mindfulness effects and how those mediators apply to work, and (c) argue that more rigorous, empirical research is needed to understand the mechanisms through which mindfulness practices lead to positive work outcomes.

Type
Commentaries
Information
Industrial and Organizational Psychology , Volume 8 , Issue 4 , December 2015 , pp. 620 - 629
Copyright
Copyright © Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology 2015 

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