3. September 2010 by John Schinnerer.

From Physorg.com…

A psychologist and stress expert at the University at Buffalo says research on traumatic experiences pinpoints specific sources of stress that the trapped Chilean miners and their rescuers will need to manage in the weeks and months ahead, and offers ways of dealing with them.

Michael J. Poulin, PhD, is an assistant professor psychology at UB whose research and publications focus on human response to stress and adversity.

“There are few direct parallels to their experience,” he says, “but we know, first of all, that the miners have been greatly deprived of control over their environment, which laboratory and field research indicates is highly stressful.

“Media reports suggest they are coping with this in some effective ways — by taking control of what they can: organizing their living space, choosing leaders, relying on their religious faith and fashioning games and toys out of the materials available to them,” he says.

Their colleagues and loved ones at the surface can assist in this process in several ways, Poulin says, “The most important of which is by insisting that the miners be kept as fully aware of the rescue progress as possible, and consulted for input whenever appropriate.”

Another source of stress, he says, is their very crowded condition.

“One thing that can mitigate stress from that source,” Poulin says, “is for the miners to establish minimal personal space (e.g., individual sleeping areas), and undertake expeditions into side tunnels, provided these are safe.

“As they receive supplies from the surface,” he says, “I expect that a common strategy will be for miners to take a page from the subway- or elevator-rider’s playbook and carve privacy out of the crowded underground room in which they’re trapped by using such techniques as immersing themselves in reading material or listening to music on headphones.”

Environmental issues aside, the biggest source of stress and anxiety for the miners, according to Poulin, is very likely to be the fact that they are cut off from their social world, although certainly less so than cave-in victims who had no contact with rescuers.

“In response to this,” he says, “they are almost certainly developing strong bonds with one another. That is a good thing, but another goal for their colleagues on the surface should be to facilitate their frequent communication with loved ones.

“Moreover,” Poulin says, “as important as it is for the miners to feel connected to and supported by others, research in my lab and elsewhere suggests that their own ability to provide support to those they care for may be just as crucial for their well-being.

“With this in mind,” he says, “it may be important for the miners to realize that, while they are in the mine, each of them has a responsibility to care not only for themselves but also for their fellow miners.”

As a final note, Poulin says it is worth observing that those who experience any kind of stressful or traumatic event are often remarkably resilient.

“From media reports,” he says, “these miners seem to embody this truism. They have spontaneously adopted multiple strategies to manage the stress of their situation. We can hope that when they are rescued, they emerge psychologically little worse for the wear, despite having been through something most of us can barely imagine.”

Provided by University at Buffalo (news : web)

For full article, click here.

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3. September 2010 by John Schinnerer.

From ScienceDaily (Sep. 1, 2010)

‘Mindfulness’, the process of learning to become more aware of our ongoing experiences, increases well-being in adolescent boys, a new study reports.

Researchers from the University of Cambridge analyzed 155 boys from two independent UK schools, Tonbridge and Hampton, before and after a four-week crash course in mindfulness. After the trial period, the 14 and 15 year-old boys were found to have increased well-being, defined as the combination of feeling good (including positive emotions such as happiness, contentment, interest and affection) and functioning well.

Professor Felicia Huppert of the Well-being Institute at the University of Cambridge said: “More and more we are realising the importance of supporting the overall mental health of children. Our study demonstrates that this type of training improves well-being in adolescents and that the more they practice, the greater the benefits. Importantly, many of the students genuinely enjoyed the exercises and said they intended to continue them — a good sign that many children would be receptive to this type of intervention.

“Another significant aspect of this study is that adolescents who suffered from higher levels of anxiety were the ones who benefitted most from the training.”

For the experiment, students in six classes were trained in mindful awareness — mindfulness. Mindfulness is a ‘way of paying attention. It means consciously bringing awareness to our experience, in the present moment, without making judgements about it’. Students in the five control classes attended their normal religious studies lessons.

The training consisted of four 40 minute classes, one per week, which presented the principles and practice of mindfulness. The classes covered the concepts of awareness and acceptance, and taught the schoolboys such things as how to practice bodily awareness by noticing where they were in contact with their chairs or the floor, paying attention to their breathing, and noticing all the sensations involved in walking.

The students were also asked to practice outside the classroom and were encouraged to listen to a CD or mp3 file for eight minutes a day. These exercises are intended to improve concentration and reduce stress.

All participants completed a short series of online questionnaires before and after the mindfulness project. The questionnaires measured the effect of the training on changes in mindful awareness, resilience (the ability to modify responses to changing situations) and psychological well-being.

The researchers found that although it was a short programme, the students who participated in the mindfulness training had increased levels of well-being which were proportional to the amount of time the students spent practicing their new skills.

Professor Huppert continued: “We believe that the effects of mindfulness training can enhance well-being in a number of ways. If you practice being in the present, you can increase positive feelings by savouring pleasurable on-going experiences. Additionally, calming the mind and observing experiences with curiosity and acceptance not only reduces stress but helps with attention control and emotion regulation — skills which are valuable both inside and outside the classroom.”

The success of this initial study has recently led to the creation of an exciting 8 week mindfulness curriculum for schools in both the state and private sectors. This new curriculum, which includes games and video clips, should have even greater benefits.

For further information, see http://mindfulnessinschools.org.

The above story is reprinted (with editorial adaptations by ScienceDaily staff) from materials provided by University of Cambridge, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.
1.    Felicia Huppert, Daniel Johnson. A controlled trial of mindfulness training in schools: The importance of practice for an impact on well-being. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 2010; 5 (4): 264 DOI: 10.1080/17439761003794148

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