ArticlePDF Available

The Experiential Incompatibility of Mindfulness and Flow Absorption

Authors:

Abstract and Figures

Mindfulness and flow are both beneficial states of mind, but are they difficult to experience simultaneously? After all, flow involves losing self-awareness within an activity, and mindfulness involves maintaining self-awareness throughout or even despite an activity. In three studies, we examine this potential antagonism, finding negative associations between mindfulness and flow as assessed in a variety of ways and contexts. These associations emerged within Global trait data and diary data concerning daily goal behavior (Study 1), experience-sampling data concerning behavior at the time of signaling (Study 2), and experimental data concerning the experience of playing the flow-conducive computer game, Tetris, after undergoing a mindfulness induction (Study 3). However, these associations only apply to the “absorption” aspect of flow, not the “sense of control” aspect.
Content may be subject to copyright.
Article
The Experiential Incompatibility
of Mindfulness and Flow Absorption
Kennon M. Sheldon
1
, Mike Prentice
1
, and Marc Halusic
1
Abstract
Mindfulness and flow are both beneficial states of mind, but are they difficult to experience simultaneously? After all, flow
involves losing self-awareness within an activity, and mindfulness involves maintaining self-awareness throughout or even despite
an activity. In three studies, we examine this potential antagonism, finding negative associations between mindfulness and flow
as assessed in a variety of ways and contexts. These associations emerged within Global trait data and diary data concerning
daily goal behavior (Study 1), experience-sampling data concerning behavior at the time of signaling (Study 2), and experimental
data concerning the experience of playing the flow-conducive computer game, Tetris, after undergoing a mindfulness induction
(Study 3). However, these associations only apply to the ‘‘absorption’’ aspect of flow, not the ‘‘sense of control’’ aspect.
Keywords
agency, health, self-regulation, personality, motivation and performance
Positive psychology is, in part, a quest to understand optimal
experience (Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi, 2000). Two forms
of optimal experiencing have received the majority of
attention within the literature, that is, mindfulness and flow.
Mindfulness involves ‘‘non-elaborative, non-judgmental,
present-centered awareness in which each thought, feeling,
or sensation that arises in the attentional field is acknowl-
edged and accepted as is’’ (Bishop et al., 2003, p. 31). Mind-
fulness is typically construed as a mental practice that requires
self-discipline and a commitment to trying to maintain reflective
awareness of each passing moment. In contrast, flow involves
intense task concentration, a loss of self-awareness, an altered
sense of time, and merging of activity and awareness (Csikszent-
mihalyi, 1990; Nakamura & Csikszentmihalyi, 2009). Flow is an
absorbing mental state that arises spontaneously when one is
engrossed within optimally challenging activity.
How are mindfulness and flow related to each other, and can
a person experience both states at the same time? At first
glance, mindfulness and flow seem very similar: Both are
rewarding mental states in which people are fully engaged in
the present. Furthermore, both are considered to be indicators
of mental health and optimal functioning (e.g., Landha¨ußer &
Keller, 2012; Rogatko, 2009; Weinstein, Brown, & Ryan,
2009). But, at a second look, the two states seem quite differ-
ent. Mindfulness involves cultivating an observer of conscious-
ness, trying to maintain reflective awareness of each moment.
In contrast, flow involves losing the inner observer within an
altered state of consciousness in which the moment blurs into
a continuous stream of activity. In terms of William James’
(1890) famous metaphor of the ‘‘stream of consciousness,’
mindfulness seems to entail standing on the bank of the stream
without falling in; in contrast, flow entails jumping into the
stream and tackling a challenging task or problem. In this
sense, the two states might even be viewed as antagonistic, with
mindfulness tending to bring one back to the bank of the
stream, precluding flow.
Of course, mindfulness practice is not intended to prevent
flow. Rather, it appears the main intention of mindfulness
practice is to curtail mind wandering (Giambra, 1995; Singer,
1966; Smallwood & Schooler, 2006; Wegner, 1997). Mind
wandering involves an unmonitored mental process that has
run away from an intention to monitor thoughts and behavior
(Schooler et al., 2014). The familiar experience of realizing
that one has been reading while one’s mind is elsewhere, such
that no information has been taken in, is a good example of
mind wandering (Schooler et al., 2014). Mindfulness medita-
tion involves trying to notice when one’s mind has wandered,
so one can bring one’s attention back to the present (Kabat-
Zinn, 1982). Supporting the idea that mindfulness and mind
wandering are antithetical, Mrazek, Smallwood, and Schooler
(2012) showed that an 8-min mindfulness induction reduced
subsequent mind wandering.
1
University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA
Corresponding Author:
Kennon M. Sheldon, University of Missouri, McAlester Hall, Columbia, MO
65211, USA.
Email: sheldonk@missouri.edu
Social Psychological and
Personality Science
2015, Vol. 6(3) 276-283
ªThe Author(s) 2014
Reprints and permission:
sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.nav
DOI: 10.1177/1948550614555028
spps.sagepub.com
at University of Missouri-Columbia on April 27, 2016spp.sagepub.comDownloaded from
What light do these findings shed on the relationship
between mindfulness and flow? Mind wandering is like flow
in that for both states there is absorption in a stream of men-
tal content that proceeds without reflective awareness.
Assuming mindfulness works in opposition to mind wander-
ing, this suggests that states of mindfulness may work
against states of absorption. However, mind wandering is
unlike flow in that no controlled activity takes place during
mind wandering, whereas such activity does take place dur-
ing flow. Again assuming that mindfulness is in opposition
to mind wandering, this suggests that states of mindfulness
work in favor of controlled activity, such as may occur dur-
ing flow states. These two suggestions will be considered
further subsequently.
Another way that mindfulness and flow may differ is in the
underlying brain states involved. Dietrich (2004) provided
evidence for a ‘transient hypofrontality’ explanation of flow,
which states that flow occurs when activation in the frontal
and medial temporal lobes is temporarily suppressed, allow-
ing well-learned processes to proceed without interference
from deliberative thought (see also Peifer, 2012). In contrast,
research indicates that mindfulness training increases frontal
lobe functioning (Travis & Arenander, 2004), in particular
increasing left versus right frontal aasymmetry (Davidson
et al., 2003; Moynihan et al., 2013). The fact that flow is asso-
ciated with reduced frontal activity and mindfulness with
enhanced frontal activity further supports their potential
disjunction.
Accordingly, our basic hypothesis was that mindfulness
would be negatively associated with flow, because mindful-
ness practice involves striving for sustained self-awareness,
which likely works against losing oneself within activity, a
key to flow experience (Csikszentmihalyi, 2008; Leary
et al., 2006). Our hypothesis is similar to Mrazek et al.’s
(2012) that mindfulness is negatively associated with mind
wandering, but we believe our hypothesis is less self-
evident, with more potential to be disproven. Some existing
research supports our hypothesis. Brown and Ryan (2003)
developed the Mindful Attention and Awareness Scale
(MAAS) and showed that trait mindfulness was significantly
negatively correlated with trait absorption. As noted previ-
ously, absorption is an important component of flow states,
one that is plausibly limited by mindfulness.
However, other research seems to contradict our hypoth-
esis. For example, Thienot et al. (2014) showed that mindful-
ness in sport was positively associated with flow, and
Aherne, Moran, and Lonsdale (2011) showed that mindful-
ness training can enhance flow, primarily the aspects of hav-
ing clear goals and a sense of control. Kaufman, Glass, and
Arnkoff (2009) also showed that a mindfulness intervention
could enhance flow in sport (Jackson & Eklund, 2002). We
suggest that these seemingly contradictory results may be due
to a lack of specificity concerning which aspects of mindful-
ness and which aspects of flow are being considered and
measured. We discuss the conceptual and measurement
issues subsequently.
Conceptualizing and Measuring Mindfulness
Mindfulness has been conceptualized and measured in a variety
of different ways. Still, common to all existing measures is
some assessment of reflective self-awareness, which is the state
of mind that may work against flow states. For example, the
Toronto Mindfulness Scale (Davis, Lau, & Cairns, 2009)
includes a ‘‘Decentering’’ subscale, concerning not personally
identifying with thoughts or feelings (Lau et al., 2006). The
Philadelphia Mindfulness Scale (Cardaciotto, Herbert, Forman,
Moitra, & Farrow, 2008) contains a ‘‘present moment aware-
ness’’ scale. The Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire
(FFMQ; Baer, Smith, Hopkins, Krietemeyer, & Toney, 2006)
also contains a reflective awareness subscale, titled ‘‘Acting
with Awareness.’’ Finally, the MAAS (Brown & Ryan, 2003)
focuses only on reflective awareness. In the current research,
we focused on measures of reflective awareness, the common
core of mindfulness measures to date.
Conceptualizing and Measuring Flow
We wished to identify flow measures that might help address
the two suggestions made previously—that mindfulness may
work against the sense of flow absorption but may work in
favor of the sense of flow control. The Flow Short Scale (FSS;
Rheinberg, Vollmeyer, & Engerser, 2003) was the most obvi-
ous candidate, because the FSS distinguishes between two
relevant flow facets, that is, absorption, which refers to being
task engaged with minimal self-consciousness and a distorted
sense of time, and automaticity, which refers to being in con-
trol and that intentional activity is occurring effortlessly. In
this research, we refer to the automaticity facet of flow as
‘felt control,’’ because the items refer primarily to a sense
of being comfortably in control of a process (e.g., I have
everything under control, I have no difficulty concentrating).
As discussed earlier, mindfulness should be negatively asso-
ciated with feelings of absorption and of being lost in activity
(Brown & Ryan, 2003) but may be positively associated with
the feelings of control (Aherne, Moran, & Lonsdale, 2011).
Summary and Hypotheses
In sum, in this research, we focused on the association
between mindfulness, conceptualized as reflective awareness,
and flow, conceptualized as having both an absorption aspect
and a felt control aspect. Study 1 examined the association
between mindfulness and flow attwolevels,thatis,traitand
daily retrospective. Study 2 examined the association of
mindfulness and flow at a momentary level, using an experi-
ence sampling methodology. Study 3 used an experimental
methodology to examine the influence of a mindfulness
induction upon flow states during game play. In each study,
we hypothesized that mindfulness would be negatively asso-
ciated with flow, or at least, with the absorption aspect of
flow. We also speculated that mindfulness might be positively
related to the felt control aspect of flow.
Sheldon et al. 277
at University of Missouri-Columbia on April 27, 2016spp.sagepub.comDownloaded from
Study 1
Method
Procedure and Participants
During an in-class assessment, we first administered trait mea-
sures of mindfulness and flow. Later in that assessment, we
asked participants to identify two personal goals to pursue that
semester. After 6 to 12 weeks, participants completed six daily
diary reports rating their experiences of mindfulness and flow
while working on their goals that day. Thus, our overall study
design allowed us to test for the hypothesized negative associ-
ation between mindfulness and flow in two different ways, at
two different timescales.
Initial participants were 272 students, comprising 109 men
and 163 women, within a social psychology class that was taught
at the University of Missouri. Participants were 94%Caucasian.
They participated in exchange for extra course credit.
Measures
Trait-level assessment of mindfulness and flow (Time 1). Partici-
pants completed the FFMQ (Baer et al., 2006) regarding ‘‘your
general thinking style.’’ Of interest in this context was
the 8-item ‘‘Act with awareness’’ facet. Participants also com-
pleted the 10-item Rheinberg, Vollmeyer, and Engerser (2003)
FSS regarding ‘‘your experience when you are working on
something interesting.’’ In addition to computing an overall
flow score, we used Rheinberg et al.’s (2003) categorization
scheme to break the FSS down into a 6-item ‘‘Felt Control’
subscale and a 4-item ‘‘Absorption’’ subscale. Absorption and
Felt Control correlated at .52 (p< .001), indicating that they
are appropriately cast as two related aspects of flow.
Goal selection (Time 1). Participants were also asked to select
two ‘‘semester goals’’ from a list of four goals that were
offered, that is, two academic and two interpersonal. This goal
selection task was part of a different study, but it provided
grist for the second part of Study 1. Preliminary analyses
showed that none of the results reported in this article varied
according to the goals the participants selected, and thus the
issue of goal content will be ignored henceforth.
Daily diary assessment of mindfulness and flow in goal pursuit (Time
2a–f). In the second half of the semester, participants were
invited to participate in a daily diary study that involved
completing a short questionnaire at the end of each of 6 days.
Participants were asked, for each goal they selected, how they
felt working on the goal that day. The 4-item absorption facet
of the FSS was administered twice (once for each goal).
Because it was less central to the investigation, the FSS con-
trol subscale was not administered in this context; instead we
used the 9-item Short Flow Scale (SFS; Martin & Jackson,
2008), which is typically combined into a single aggregate
score that taps many characteristics of flow (Jackson &
Eklund, 2002). In addition, the 5-item State Mindful Aware-
ness and Attention Scale (S-MAAS; Brown & Ryan, 2003)
was administered for each goal, with a stem of ‘‘While work-
ing on this goal ...’ and items such as ‘‘I was preoccupied
with the future or the past, not the present,’’ and ‘‘I found it
difficult to stay focused on what was happening.’’ Responses
were averaged across the two goals to yield daily scores,
and the six daily scores were averaged for each participant
to yield measures of their typical state of mind when working
on goals.
Results
Table 1 contains descriptive statistics for all Study 1 variables
as well as the analogous variables for Studies 2 and 3.
Trait Level
First, we examined the correlations between the trait ‘‘Act
with Awareness’’ subscale and (1) the overall flow score,
(2) the Absorption subscale score, and (3) the Felt Control
subscale score. We used all 272 initial participants for these
analyses. The correlations were .16 (p¼.007), .12 (p¼
.051), and .30 (p< .001). Thus, trait mindfulness was posi-
tively associated with trait flow, mainly because mindfulness
was positively associated with the control facet of the flow
scale. As hypothesized, however, trait mindfulness was nega-
tively associated with the absorption facet of the FSS, demon-
strating a splitting effect of mindfulness with respect to these
two facets of flow.
Diary Level
Next, we examined the analogous three associations for the
averaged daily diary reports, using the 162 participants who
Table 1. Descriptive Statistics for Study Variables Across the Three
Studies.
MSD a
Study 1
Cross-sectional component
1. Act with awareness 3.26 .57 .86
2. FSS control 3.17 .67 .79
3. FSS absorption 3.39 .62 .60
Diary component
1. State MAAS 2.49 .59 .63
2. FSS absorption 2.90 .58 .64
3. Jackson Short Flow 3.15 .60 .62
Study 2
1. Grand-mean state MAAS 3.60 .80 .70
2. Grand-mean FSS absorption 2.70 .79 .60
3. Grand-mean Jackson Short Flow 2.80 .67 .78
Study 3
FSS control 3.57 .68 .79
FSS absorption 3.38 .69 .63
Note. FSS ¼Flow Short Scale; MAAS ¼Mindful Attention and Awareness Scale;
M¼mean; SD ¼standard deviation.
278 Social Psychological and Personality Science 6(3)
at University of Missouri-Columbia on April 27, 2016spp.sagepub.comDownloaded from
completed this part of the study. The negative correlation
between Mindfulness and the FSS Absorption subscale was
r¼.37 (p< .001), again as hypothesized. The negative asso-
ciation between Mindfulness and the Jackson Short Flow
(JSF) Scale was much weaker at r¼.14, p¼.068 (FSS
absorption and the JSF Scale correlated .76, p< .001). We
conducted an exploratory principal components analysis of
the JSF, uncovering a ‘‘felt control’’ component (I felt compe-
tent to meet the demands of the goal, I had a good idea how
well I was doing, I had a feeling of total control, and I was
unworried what others might think of me) and an ‘‘absorp-
tion’’ component (I felt completely focused on the task at
hand, the way time passed seemed to be different from nor-
mal, and the experience was extremely rewarding). The two
remaining items cross-loaded on these components and were
excluded. Echoing the results mentioned previously, mindful-
ness was negatively associated with absorption (r¼.22,
p¼.006) but unrelated to felt control (r¼.03, ns).
Brief Discussion
Study 1 found initial support for our primary hypothesis. Mea-
sures of reflective awareness were negatively associated with
measures of flow absorption, and positively associated with
or unrelated to measures of flow control. Thus, although the
absorption and felt control facets of flow were strongly corre-
lated with each other, the two facets appear to be differentially
related to mindfulness.
Study 2
In Study 2, we sought to assess participants’ experience of
mindfulness and flow at precise moments in time. Again we
expected to find a negative association between mindfulness
and flow absorption and perhaps a positive association between
mindfulness and flow control. That is, if participants were
highly absorbed in an activity at the moment of signaling, they
should report less reflective awareness at that moment. We also
expected to find a negative association between mindfulness
averaged across the observations (an estimate of trait mindful-
ness) and participants’ momentary levels of experiential
absorption. This provided a separate, independent test of our
main study hypothesis.
Methods
Procedure and Participants
Study 2 employed an experience sampling design. Partici-
pants were 44 introductory psychology students (6 male,
38 female, and 87%Caucasian) who selected the study from
among a range of options. We signaled participants with text
messages to their smartphones containing links to Internet-
hosted surveys. Twenty-one assessment times were randomly
generated, three per day, all between 10 a.m. and 10 p.m.
(e.g., 10:30 a.m., 3:15 p.m., and 6:50 p.m. for the first day,
and so on). Text messages were sent to all participants at the
same time points. Participants were instructed to fill out each
survey within 1 hr of receiving the message, concerning their
experience the moment before they received the message.
Participants were excluded if they responded 10 times or less;
the average number of responses was 17.46 (SD ¼2.94; min-
imum ¼11, maximum ¼21).
Measures
Mindfulness. Mindfulness was measured at each of the 21
sampled times using the 5-item S-MAAS (Brown & Ryan,
2003).
Flow. As in the diary portion of Study 1, flow was measured at
each of the 21 sampled times using the entire SFS (Martin &
Jackson, 2008) and the absorption component of the FSS
(Rheinberg et al., 2003).
Results
A series of multilevel models were conducted using the Mixed
Model procedure in SPSS with participants at Level 2 and
Experience Sampling Methodology time points at Level 1.
Because our main questions concerned flow absorption, we
first fitted a null model predicting that variable. The intraclass
correlation for that model (ICC ¼0.60) suggested that suffi-
cient within-person variance existed to justify using multile-
vel modeling. Raw Level-1 predictor variables contain
variance associated with both within-person effects (the
extent to which that variable is higher or lower for a given per-
son at a given time point) and between-person effects (the
extent to which that variable is higher on average for one indi-
vidual than another). Following Hofman and Gavin (1998),
we modeled within-person effects by person-mean centering
all Level-1 predictors, which subtract the within-person mean
ofavariablefromeachrawtimepointscore.Thus,scores
above zero indicate a higher than average score for a given
individual. To model between-person effects, we created a
Level-2 predictor using grand-mean centering. Thus, scores
above zero indicate that a person’s average score on a given
variable is higher than the overall group mean of that variable.
These two versions of the predictor variable are orthogonal.
Models predicting the absorption component of the FSS,
and the entire SFS, are presented in Table 2, along with confi-
dence intervals. Results indicate that State-MAAS is negatively
related to flow absorption and to flow as measured by the SFS,
at both within- and between-person levels of analysis.
Brief Discussion
Study 2 replicated and extended the finding that reflective
awareness is negatively associated with flow, both in terms
of the absorption component of flow and as measured by the
SFS. First, mindfulness averaged across time points (a trait-
like indicator) was negatively associated with momentary state
flow absorption (a between-person effect). The more mindful a
Sheldon et al. 279
at University of Missouri-Columbia on April 27, 2016spp.sagepub.comDownloaded from
participant was on average, the less likely they were to be
absorbed or in flow at particular moments. Second, state mind-
fulness at a particular point in time was negatively associated
with state flow absorption at that point in time (a within-
person effect). This indicates that the more reflectively aware
participants felt at the moment they were signaled, the less
absorption they reported feeling in that moment.
Study 3
None of the studies so far have explored processes occurring as
participants engage in a specific activity known to arouse flow
states. Instead, all the studies so far have referred retrospec-
tively to general thinking styles or goal pursuits (Study 1), or
they have referred to the participant’s state of mind at the time
of being signaled for assessment (Study 2). To further test these
associations in an experimental fashion, in Study 3 we ran-
domly assigned participants to engage in a mindfulness exer-
cise (vs. control exercise vs. no exercise), just prior to
playing a computer game known for its high levels of challenge
and interest—Tetris. Participants were interrupted at three
points during the game so that their momentary state of mind
could be assessed. We hypothesized that those who did the
mindful awareness induction would report less flow absorption
as they played the game and perhaps more flow control.
Method
Participants and Procedure
Participants were 101 introductory psychology students, com-
prising 39 men and 62 women, who took part to help fulfill a
course requirement. After being greeted at the lab, they were
seated at a computer terminal with headphones. After complet-
ing preliminary questionnaires, 50 participants proceeded
directly to the computer game and the other 51 first did an
audio induction. Induction participants (24 for mindful aware-
nessand27formusclerelaxation)wereaskedtoget
comfortable and follow the instructions in the audio recording
they would hear. Afterward, the computer game Tetris was
introduced; some participants had played it and some had not
(participant’s level of experience with the game was explored
as a covariate, but it did not affect results). The game involves
using arrow keys to rotate falling blocks of different shapes so
that they fit into slots at the bottom of the screen. The goal is to
form rows with no gaps, and gapless rows are eliminated from
the stack. Failure to eliminate rows leads to increasing stack
height, and the player loses once the stack reaches the top of
the screen.
After 1.5 min of playing the game, the game was paused and
all participants were directed to a short questionnaire. Afterward,
they went back to the game, with a second pause occurring after
another 1.5 min, and a third pause occurring after a final 1.5 min.
Of course, repeated interruptions are likely to interfere with flow
states; however, we deemed this worth the risk in order to be able
to investigate the intercorrelations of flow-related experiences in
real time. It is also noteworthy that participants resumed the
paused games exactly where they left-off.
Materials and Measures
The mindfulness induction was based on the Vipassana style of
practice adapted from an exercise in Seagal, Williams, and
Teasdale (2002). It was 9 min and 23 s long, which was
recorded by a soothing male voice. The relaxation audio was
downloaded from the University of New Hampshire health ser-
vices and was edited to be of the same length (9 min and 23 s).
It was also narrated by a soothing male speaker, accompanied
by quiet flute music (which we did not attempt to remove,
deeming it a legitimate part of the speaker’s goal of inducing
relaxation). The main other difference between the two record-
ings was the first induction’s focus on catching the mind run-
ning away and then returning attention to the breath.
The full FSS (Rheinberg et al., 2003) was employed in
Study 3, allowing us to assess both felt control and absorption
as in the first part of Study 1. Because no noteworthy patterns
of change occurred across the three administrations of the
scale, we averaged across the three administrations to derive
the most stable estimates of the two flow constructs.
Results
Table 3 contains the mean absorption and felt control scores
split by group. We conducted a 3 (group: no induction,
Table 2. Study 2: Multilevel Models Predicting Flow Absorption and Entire Short Flow Scale (SFS).
DV Predictor Unstandardized Coefficient SE LCI UCI
Flow Short Scale (absorption) S-MAAS
PMC
.11** .04 .19 .03
S-MAAS
GMC
.53** .10 .73 .32
Short Flow Scale S-MAAS
PMC
.09** .03 .16 .03
S-MAAS
GMC
.38** .11 .60 .17
Note.DV¼dependent variable; GMC ¼grand-mean centered (between-person results); LCI ¼lower confidence interval SE ¼standard error; MAAS ¼Mindful
Attention Awareness Scale; PMC ¼person-mean centered (within-subject results); UCI ¼upper confidence interval.
Table 3. Mean Differences in Flow By Induction Groups in Study 3.
No Induction Mindfulness Relaxation
Absorption 3.60 (.73)
a
3.20 (.61)
b
3.36 (.69)
ab
Control 3.66 (.76)
a
3.68 (.56)
a
3.60 (.60)
a
Note. Means not sharing subscripts differ at p< .05.
280 Social Psychological and Personality Science 6(3)
at University of Missouri-Columbia on April 27, 2016spp.sagepub.comDownloaded from
mindfulness induction, or relaxation induction) 2(flow
measure: absorption vs. control) multiple analysis of variance
with repeated measures on the second factor, and observed
the predicted two-way interaction, F(2, 98) ¼3.30, p¼.041,
b¼.156, confidential interval [CI]: [.011, .302], such that
absorption and felt control were differentially affected by
group membership; control was unaffected, and absorption was
significantly affected (see Table 3). The critical two-way inter-
action was also significant when the mindfulness induction
participants were contrasted with the no induction participants,
F(1, 72) ¼5.63, p¼.020, b¼.148, CI: [.023, .272], but not
when the mindfulness induction participants were contrasted
with the relaxation participants, F(1,49) ¼2.44, p¼.125,
b¼.156, CI: [.025, .199]. In a third planned contrast, the
two-way interaction was significant, F(1, 99) ¼5.39, p¼
.022, b¼.127, CI: [.018, .235], when the mindfulness induc-
tion group was contrasted with the other two groups pooled.
Brief Discussion
Study 3 extended our consideration of the potentially antago-
nistic relationship of mindfulnessandflow,toanexperimen-
tal study in which some participants were randomly assigned
to engage in a mindfulness induction before playing a poten-
tially flow-inducing game. The mindfulness induction did not
affect participants’ feelings of control within the game, but it
did reduce these participants’ sense of being absorbed within
the game. This effect was most pronounced in relation to the
no-induction control group; the muscle relaxation control
group had a mean flow absorption score midway between the
two extreme groups. This suggests that muscle relaxation may
have some but not all of the absorption-quelling characteris-
tics of full-blown mindfulness inductions. It may also be that
any technique that turns awareness toward mental or bodily
states may preclude full engagement in external activities.
Future research is needed to further contrast the effects of
mindfulness against mere muscle relaxation inductions.
General Discussion
Intuitively, mindfulness and flow seem to go together. Both
involve using the mind in an efficient, high-quality way, and
both are seen as signals of good mental hygiene and health.
Thus, many researchers have assumed that boosting people’s
ability to be mindful should also boost their ability to experi-
ence flow (Aherne et al., 2011; Kaufman, Glass, & Arnkoff,
2009; Thienot et al., 2014). We found evidence for the opposite
conclusion: that boosting a person’s ability to remain mindful
during an activity might actually undermine their ability to get
absorbed in that activity. In Study 1, this conclusion was sup-
ported concerning both global traits and retrospection on daily
goal processes; and in Study 2, it was supported concerning
momentary experience. Study 3 also found support at the
momentary level, using an experiment with random assignment
and a task known to be flow inducing, the game Tetris.
It is important to note, however, that this negative relation-
ship was found only for the absorption facet of flow, that is, the
feeling of being carried away by activity, with an altered sense
of time and a loss of self-awareness. This was expected since it
seems logical that one cannot both stand on the banks of a
stream and be washed down that stream at the same time. A dif-
ferent pattern was found for the felt control facet of flow, which
was nonassociated or positively associated with mindfulness.
Thus, although flow absorption and flow control facet were
highly positively correlated with each other, supporting the
general practice of combining them into a single flow score,
we found that the two facets break apart with respect to mind-
fulness. These findings provide a more nuanced perspective
both upon the flow construct itself and upon the question of
how flow relates to mindfulness.
Future research can further test whether mindfulness is
really antagonistic to absorption. Maybe not, for example,
engaging regularly in mindfulness practice might ultimately
increase flow ability, by helping to ‘‘sweep out the mental
cobwebs’’ that prevent people from entering flow states,
and/or by teaching people to concentrate in single-minded
ways that contribute to flow states. As discussed earlier, some
research has already found support for the idea that mindful-
ness training boosts flow (Aherne et al., 2011; Kaufman et al.,
2009), although none of that past research used the distinction
between flow absorption and flow control that was used in the
present research.
It is also possible that mindfulness and flow can come and
go in potentially rapid succession, such that although they
rarely occur simultaneously, they can both take place quite
often within a particular period of time. As one example of how
this might happen, hierarchical control theory (Carver & Sche-
ier, 1981, 1998, 2009) proposes that higher levels of control
within the action system, associated with greater self-
awareness, set the agenda for lower levels of control, which,
once activated, can run off without conscious awareness. From
a self-regulatory perspective, an optimal sequence might entail
first mindfully surveying the situation and one’s reactions to it
in order to decide what to do, then going into a flow state in ser-
vice of one’s selected actions, then going into a mindful state in
order to observe the results of those actions, then going into
another flow state in order to best accomplish the next actions,
and so on. Indeed, Leary, Adams, and Tate (2006) termed such
a process ‘‘hypo-egoic self-regulation,’’ in which the person
relinquishes control of the stream of consciousness to subcon-
scious processes, to avoid the negative effects of ego-
involvement and overcontrol. Leary et al. (2006) identified
flow as one such hypo-egoic process.
Further research is also needed to examine the relation-
ships of other aspects of the mindfulness construct with
other aspects of the flow construct. Additional mindfulness
subscales include curiosity, acceptance, observing, des-
cribing, nonjudging, and nonreactivity (Baer et al., 2006;
Cardaciotto et al., 2008; Davis et al., 2009). Additional flow
subscales include challenge–skill balance, action–awareness
merging, clear goals, concentration on the task at hand, time
Sheldon et al. 281
at University of Missouri-Columbia on April 27, 2016spp.sagepub.comDownloaded from
transformation, and autotelic experience (Csikszentmihalyi,
1990; Jackson & Csikszentmihalyi, 1999; Martin & Jackson,
2008). Although we believe reflective awareness (examined
herein) is the core of the mindfulness construct, more can
be learned by examining these other aspects of mindfulness.
We believe that absorption and felt control represent the core
features of the flow construct, but again, more can be learned
by examining these other aspects of flow.
Limitations of this research include the college student
samples from a single region in the United States; the failure
to examine long-term or highly skilled mindfulness practi-
tioners, or to examine the effects of extended mindfulness
training going beyond the 10-min induction of Study 3; and
the failure to examine mediator or moderator processes
involved in the basic effects demonstrated herein. However,
we have shown that such research will be well worth doing.
Declaration of Conflicting Interests
The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to
the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Funding
The author(s) received no financial support for the research, authorship,
and/or publication of this article.
References
Aherne, C., Moran, A. P., & Lonsdale, C. (2011). The effect of
mindfulness training on athletes’ flow: An initial investigation.
Sport Psychologist,25, 177–189.
Baer, R. A., Smith, G. T., Hopkins, J., Krietemeyer, J., & Toney, L.
(2006). Using self-report assessment methods to explore facets
of mindfulness. Assessment,13, 27–45.
Bishop, S. R., Lau, M., Shapiro, S., Carlson, L., Anderson, N. D.,
Carmody, J., ...Devins, G. (2004). Mindfulness: A proposed
operational definition. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice,
11, 230–241.
Brown, K. W., & Ryan, R. M. (2003). The benefits of being present:
Mindfulness and its role in psychological well-being. Journal of
Personality and Social Psychology,84, 822.
Cardaciotto, L., Herbert, J. D., Forman, E. M., Moitra, E., & Farrow,
V. (2008). The assessment of present-moment awareness and
acceptance the Philadelphia mindfulness scale. Assessment,15,
204–223.
Carver, C. S., & Scheier, M. F. (1981). Attention and self-regulation:
A control-theory approach to human behavior. New York, NY:
Springer-Verlag.
Carver,C.S.,&Scheier,M.F.(2001).On the self-regulation of
behavior. New York, NY: Cambridge University Press.
Carver, C. S., & Scheier, M. F. (2009). Self-regulation and control in
personality functioning. In P. Corr & G. Matthews (Eds.), The
Cambridge handbook of personality psychology (pp. 427–440).
Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press.
Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1990). Flow: The psychology of optimal
experience. New York, NY: Harper and Row.
Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2008). Flow: The psychology of optimal expe-
rience. New York, NY: Harper Perennial.
Davidson, R. J., Kabat-Zinn, J., Schumacher, J., Rosenkranz, M.,
Muller, D., Santorelli, S. F., ...Sheridan, J. F. (2003). Alterra-
tions in brain and immune function produced by mindfulness
meditation. Psychosomatic Medicine,65, 564–570.
Davis, K. M., Lau, M. A., & Cairns, D. R. (2009). Development and
preliminary validation of a trait version of the Toronto Mindfulness
Scale. Journal of Cognitive Psychotherapy,23, 185–197.
Dietrich, A. (2004). Neurocognitive mechanisms underlying the
experience of flow. Consciousness and Cognition: An Interna-
tional Journal,13,746761.
Giambra, L. M. (1995). A laboratory method for investigating influ-
ences on switching attention to task-unrelated imagery and
thought. Consciousness and Cognition,4, 1–21.
Hofmann, D. A., & Gavin, M. B. (1998). Centering decisions in hier-
archical linear models: Implications for research in organizations.
Journal of Management,24, 623–641.
Jackson, S. A., & Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1999). Flow in sports. Cham-
paign, IL: Human Kinetics.
Jackson, S. A., & Eklund, R. C. (2002). Assessing flow in physical
activity: The flow state scale-2 and dispositional flow scale-2.
Journal of Sport & Exercise Psychology,24, 133–150.
James, W. (1890). The principles of psychology (Vol. 1). New York,
NY: Holt.
Kabat-Zinn, J. (1982). An outpatient program in behavioral medicine
for chronic pain patients based on the practice of mindfulness med-
itation: Theoretical considerations and preliminary results. Gen-
eral Hospital Psychiatry,4, 33–47.
Kaufman, K. A., Glass, C. R., & Arnkoff, D. B. (2009). Evaluation of
Mindful Sport Performance Enhancement (MSPE): A new
approach to promote flow in athletes. Journal of Clinical Sport
Psychology,3, 334–356.
Landha¨ußer, A., & Keller, J. (2012). Flow and its affective, cog-
nitive, and performance-related consequences. In S. Engeser
(Ed.), Advances in flow research (pp. 65–85). New York,
NY: Springer.
Lau, M. A., Bishop, S. R., Segal, Z. V., Buis, T., Anderson, N. D.,
Carlson, L., ...Devins, G. (2006). The Toronto Mindfulness Scale:
Development and validation. Journal of Clinical Psychology,12,
1445–1467.
Leary, M. R., Adams, C. E., & Tate, E. B. (2006). Hypo-egoic self-
regulation: Exercising self-control by diminishing the influence
of the self. Journal of Personality,74, 1803–1831.
Martin, A. J., & Jackson, S. A. (2008). Brief approaches to assessing
task absorption and enhanced subjective experience: Examining
‘short’ and ‘core’ flow in diverse performance domains. Motiva-
tion and Emotion,32, 141–157.
Moynihan, J. A., Chapman, B. P., Klorman, R., Krasner, M. S.,
Duberstein, P. R., Brown, K. W., & Talbot, N. L. (2013).
Mindfulness-based stress reduction for older adults: Effects on
executive function, frontal alpha asymmetry and immune func-
tion. Neuropsychobiology,68,3443.
Mrazek, M. D., Smallwood, J., & Schooler, J. W. (2012). Mindfulness
and mind-wandering: Finding convergence through opposing con-
structs. Emotion,12, 442.
Nakamura, J., & Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2009). Flow theory and
research. In S. Lopez & C. R. Snyder (Eds.), Oxford handbook
282 Social Psychological and Personality Science 6(3)
at University of Missouri-Columbia on April 27, 2016spp.sagepub.comDownloaded from
of positive psychology (2nd ed., pp. 89–105). New York, NY:
Oxford University Press.
Peifer, C. (2012). Psychophysiological correlates of flow-experience.
In S. Engeser (Ed.), Advances in flow research (pp. 139–164).
New York, NY: Springer Science þBusiness Media.
Rheinberg, F., Vollmeyer, R., & Engeser, S. (2003). Die Erfassung
des Flow-Erlebens [The assessment of flow experience]. In J.
Stiensmeier-Pelster & F. Rheinberg (Eds.), Diagnostik von
Selbstkonzept, Lernmotivation und Selbstregulation [Diagnosis
of motivation and self-concept] (pp. 261–279). Go¨ttingen,
Germany: Hogrefe.
Rogatko, T. P. (2009). The influence of flow on positive affect in
college students. Journal of Happiness Studies,10, 133–148.
Schooler, J.W., Mrazek, M. D., Franklin, M. S., Baird, B., Mooneyham,
B. W., Zedelius, C., & Broadway, J. M. (2014). The middle way:
Finding the balance between mindfulness and mind-wandering.
The Psychology of Learning and Motivation,60,133.
Segal,Z.V.,Williams,J.M.G.,&Teasdale,J.D.(2002).
Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for depression: A new
approach to preventing relapse. New York, NY: Guilford Press.
Seligman, M. E., & Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2000). Positive psychol-
ogy: An introduction.American Psychological Association,55,
5–14.
Singer, J. L. (1966). Daydreaming: An introduction to the experimen-
tal study of inner experience. New York, NY: Random House.
Smallwood, J., & Schooler, J. W. (2006). The restless mind. Psycho-
logical Bulletin,132, 946.
Thienot, E., Jackson, B., Dimmock, J., Grove, J. R., Bernier, M., &
Fournier, J. F. (2014). Development and preliminary validation
of the mindfulness inventory for sport. Psychology of Sport and
Exercise,15, 72–80.
Travis, F., & Arenander, A. (2004). EEG asymmetry and mindfulness
meditation. Psychosomatic Medicine,66, 147–148.
Wegner, D. M. (1997). When the antidote is the poison: Ironic mental
control processes. Psychological Science,8, 148–150.
Weinstein, N., Brown, K. W., & Ryan, R. M. (2009). A multi-method
examination of the effects of mindfulness on stress attribution,
coping, and emotional well-being. Journal of Research in Person-
ality,43, 374–385.
Author Biographies
Kennon M. Sheldon is a professor of psychology at the University of
Missouri. His interest areas include optimal functioning and positive
psychology.
Mike Prentice is a PhD student at the University of Missouri. He is
interested in self-regulation and positive functioning.
Marc Halusic is a PhD student at the University of Missouri. He is
interested in self-complexity and positive functioning.
Sheldon et al. 283
at University of Missouri-Columbia on April 27, 2016spp.sagepub.comDownloaded from
... Previous research about the positive effects of mindfulness on wellbeing and motivation suggests that MBSR training could be utilized beyond a reduction of stress and foster optimal psychological functioning in the workplace (Khoury et al., 2015;Vibe et al., 2017). However, prior studies assessing the effects of mindfulness on flow experience have created mixed results (Sheldon et al., 2015). Hence, despite these potential benefits of mindfulness at work to foster flow experience and the widespread application of the MBSR training off-the-job and within companies (Grossman et al., 2004;Bartlett et al., 2019), our knowledge of whether the MBSR program can successfully enhance optimal experience in the work context, as indicated by flow experience, remains limited. ...
... Even though scholars provided initial evidence that mindful individuals also tend to experience more flow (Kee and Wang, 2008;Moore, 2013), research also showed that mindful perception of the situation and the absorption during flow cannot be experienced simultaneously (Sheldon et al., 2015). Addressing this paradox, we focus on how a build-up in mindfulness over the training duration of several weeks can influence flow and stress. ...
... Firstly, by focusing on a timeframe of several weeks, we provide new insights into whether mindfulness and related interventions can be utilized to promote flow experiences as critical indicators of optimal functioning at work. Despite certain dimensions of mindfulness and flow appearing incompatible (Sheldon et al., 2015), we contribute to the existing literature on workplace interventions by exploring the potential of the MBSR training to enhance flow experience, thereby opening up new opportunities for cultivating optimal functioning within the workplace. In doing so, our research not only enhances our understanding of the relations between mindfulness and flow but also holds promise for improving wellbeing and performance in work environments. ...
Article
Full-text available
Introduction Despite numerous papers focusing on mindfulness at work, our knowledge about how flow experience and stress as indicators of optimal functioning and wellbeing at work evolve over time during the common mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) program remains limited. Drawing from the transactional model of flow and stress, we argue that a build-up of mindfulness over the training duration not only leads to a decrease in stress but also an increase in flow experience. Thereby, we examine the moderating role of emotional exhaustion amplifying the beneficial effects of mindfulness. Methods In a quasi-experimental study, 91 participants completed weekly questionnaires over the course of 8 weeks. Forty six participants in the experimental group took part in the MBSR program, while 45 participants were part of an inactive control group. Results Mindfulness and flow showed a significant linear increase over time, whereas stress exhibited a linear decrease. Those who participated in the MBSR training reported an increase in mindfulness that positively and negatively predicted the trajectories of flow and stress, respectively. Emotional exhaustion amplified the effects of the trajectory of mindfulness on the trajectories of flow and stress. Discussion These findings suggest that mindfulness can not only reduce stress but can also foster the autotelic experience of flow, especially for chronically depleted individuals. However, more research is necessary to replicate these results and address the limitations of the current study, including the quasi-experimental design, the use of self-report measures, as well as the dropout during the study period.
... Despite well-established similarities in the basic construct and outcome effects of mindfulness and flow (Allen & Kiburz, 2012;Bakker, 2005;Bakker et al., 2011;Baltzell et al., 2014;Brown & Ryan, 2003;Carpentier et al., 2012;Chen et al., 2019;Dane & Brummel, 2014;Fritz & Avsec, 2007), there are some researchers who point to the differences between these two experiences. In a study that aimed to observe the experiential incompatibility of mindfulness and flow, it was reported that boosting one´s ability to remain mindful might actually undermine their ability to reach intense states of absorption, which are reflective of flow experience (Sheldon et al., 2015). It was argued in this study that mindfulness should work on maintaining inner observer (self) and flow should work on losing on the inner observer, and thus these two experiences lie on the opposite ends of the spectrum of awareness of the self. ...
... Some researchers have tried to differentiate the awareness that get generated during mindfulness and flow by conceptualizing flow as a state of absorption into the activity. Sheldon observed a negative relation between the trait of absorption in mindfulness (Sheldon et al., 2015) and puts forth that the difference in the experiential states of flow and mindfulness lies in the fact that flow involves losing of the inner observer while mindfulness involves maintaining of the reflective awareness of each moment. Although absorption into the action is a feature that is necessary for flow, the facet of self that gets merged in the action is the one that comprises of features of the narrative self or self-concept. ...
Thesis
Full-text available
Mindfulness and flow are two optimal, therapeutic and productive states of consciousness that have recently gained a lot of attention in various fields such as clinical, cognitive science, psychology, sports, music, human-computer interaction, etc. There is an ongoing discussion about the similarities and differences between these two states, and numerous studies have appeared comparing the two based on various parameters such as present awareness and the type of self that both seek to promote. Research on integrating mindfulness to influence the flow phenomenon has proven to be a promising field, but there is little knowledge about the relationship between these two states in general and in a musical context in particular. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between the constructs of mindfulness and the dimensions of flow during the process of playing a musical instrument. Playing a musical instrument is one of the most important areas for entering the flow state, and research on the relevance of mindfulness during the flow phenomenon in a musical context is still in its infancy. This work is divided into two main studies. The first study aims to investigate whether the dispositional trait of mindfulness has a predictive relationship with different dimensions of flow. Such an investigation should understand the nature of optimal experiences of mindfulness and flow and try to elucidate the issues related to their coexistence and interdependence. The second study was a qualitative study aimed at observing the changes in the lived experience of flow by changing mindfulness levels in musicians. A one-month musical induction program was planned with two music students and two musicians. Mindfulness and flow are two optimal, therapeutic and productive states of consciousness that have recently gained a great deal of attention in various fields such as clinical, cognitive science, psychology, sports, music, human-computer interaction, etc. There is an ongoing discussion about the similarities and differences between these two states, and numerous studies have appeared comparing the two based on various parameters such as present awareness and the type of self that both seek to promote. Research on integrating mindfulness to influence the flow phenomenon has proven to be a promising field, but there is little knowledge about the relationship between these two states in general and in a musical context in particular. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between the constructs of mindfulness and the dimensions of flow during the process of playing a musical instrument. Playing a musical instrument is one of the most important areas for entering the flow state, and research on the relevance of mindfulness during the flow phenomenon in a musical context is still in its infancy. This work is divided into two main studies. The first study aims to investigate whether the dispositional trait of mindfulness has a predictive relationship with different dimensions of flow. Such an investigation should understand the nature of optimal experiences of mindfulness and flow and try to elucidate the issues related to their coexistence and interdependence. The second study was a qualitative study aimed at observing the changes in the lived experience of flow by changing mindfulness levels in musicians. A one-month musical induction program was planned with two music students and two musicians. In summary, the results of the experiments presented in this thesis provide a preliminary understanding of how mindfulness is related to various dimensions of flow and how a mindfulness training program has an ability to influence flow in musical instrument playing context. This thesis contributes to the literature at a conceptual level by identifying which constructs of mindfulness that have a greater influence on different dimensions of flow as well as outlining relevant mindfulness-based intervention techniques.
... The present study aims to investigate the direct and indirect effects of mindfulness on flow in a highly challenging work environment. Although some researchers have acknowledged the effects of mindfulness on flow (e.g., Cathcart et al., 2014;Reid, 2011a;Sheldon et al., 2015), these relationships have rarely been studied in a dynamic and challenging work context, specifically in a pre-hospital emergency environment, where highly challenging situations are the norm. The study will explore the path from mindfulness to flow experience through the mediating roles of psychological capital and coping competence. ...
... Contrary to expectations, a direct relationship between mindfulness and flow experience was not supported. This diverges from some previous studies conducted in the sporting context (Aherne et al., 2011;Jackson & Eklund, 2002) but aligns with the notion that while mindfulness and flow are related, they are distinct mental states (Richter & Hunecke, 2021;Sheldon et al., 2015). The highly stressful and uncertain work environment faced by emergency staff during the pandemic may have impeded their ability to fully absorb themselves into the flow state, despite their mindfulness. ...
Article
Full-text available
Purpose This study aims to explore how mindfulness contributed to the flow exnperience in high-pressure situations during the peak of the coronavirus pandemic, particularly in challenging contexts like emergencies. The authors seek to enhance our understanding of experiencing flow at work, particularly during the COVID-19 crisis, when challenges became hindrance demands. Prior to investigating the potential processes and mechanisms in this association, the study also explores the mediating role of two variables: psychological capital and coping competence. Method The initial study population comprised all (N = 550) emergency center employees in Mashhad, Iran. Employing simple random sampling and the Morgan table, a 220-person sample was selected. Data analysis used AMOS and SPSS software alongside a structural equation model. Result The study confirmed the relationship between mindfulness and coping skills but did not confirm the relationship between mindfulness and flow via coping skills. However, it did confirm that mindfulness is associated with flow through psychological capital. Conclusion The study enhances our comprehension of flow in high-risk work environments where challenges are not motivational. The authors explored flow experience in a work setting with hindrance demands, unlike previous studies focusing on flow in challenging and motivating contexts like sports (e.g., mountain climbing, surfing). Past research lacks a consensus on the relation between mindfulness and flow experience, leaving room for future exploration. Furthermore, the interplay between mindfulness, psychological capital, and coping competence as mediators in this relationship remains unexplored in prior studies.
... However, results from Sheldon et al. (2015) conflict with the positive association between mindfulness and flow observed in previous studies. They investigated college students' daily experiences of state mindfulness and state flow across three different contexts: while working on goals (Study 1), engaged in various activities over the course of a day (Study 2), and immediately following a brief gaming session after a mindfulness induction (Study 3). ...
... Based on previous literature (e.g., Hull et al., 2013;Lemmens et al., 2015;Mettler et al., 2020), it was hypothesized that symptoms of problematic gaming would be positively associated with aspects of flow, hours spent gaming, and being male, while being negatively associated with dispositional mindfulness (H1). In turn, based on the findings by Sheldon et al. (2015), dispositional mindfulness was hypothesized to be negatively associated with absorption (H2a); however, no significant association with control (H2b) while gaming was expected. In light of the fact that the relation between flow and problematic gaming has already been well established, the second objective was to investigate whether dispositional mindfulness adds explanatory value in predicting symptoms of problematic gaming while controlling for gender, aspects of participants' general tendency to eperience flow while playing their favourite game, and hours spent gaming per week. ...
Article
Full-text available
While problematic gaming (i.e., experiencing negative life consequences from video game use) has been positively associated with flow, its relationship to dispositional mindfulness remains unclear. However, research in a related area suggests dispositional mindfulness is negatively associated with problematic gambling. Thus, the present study sought to examine whether dispositional mindfulness would predict problematic gaming when controlling for dispositional aspects of flow (sense of control and absorption) while playing a favourite game, weekly hours spent gaming, and gender. Frequent adult gamers (N=1015; 29.7% female; Mage=23.29 years, SD=4.58) completed an online survey. Results from hierarchical multiple regression revealed lower dispositional mindfulness significantly predicted greater problematic gaming when controlling for flow, gender, and hours spent gaming. These results demonstrate the importance of mindfulness and flow on reports of problematic gaming. Implications are discussed in light of research suggesting mindfulness may be useful in the prevention of problematic behaviours.
... This indeterminacy transfers into how immersion has alternatively been used as a dependent variable, predicted by need satisfaction [426,492], and as a moderator [425,428] that purportedly "magnifies the effects of experiences in virtual contexts on behavior in the real world" [428, p. 70]. We also note that some SDT research [513] indicates that mindful awareness -a key facet of wellbeing in SDT (see section 3.4) -is inhibited by immersion 5 , suggesting that this aspect of SDT games scholarship is actually inconsistent with the wider theory. Although SDT scholars have suggested that immersion and mindful awareness do not inherently conflict [Rigby, personal communication], the empirical discrepancy is yet to be resolved. ...
... Finally, games research is well-positioned to put wellbeing itself under greater scrutiny: Mindful awareness is increasingly essential to SDT's conceptualisation of wellbeing [69,447,470] -yet, as previously noted, scholarship from SDT scholars and others has indicated that mindful awareness and immersion are antithetical [123,513]. The relationship between immersion and mindful awareness could be productively complicated by these concepts' concurrent examination in the context of videogame play. ...
Preprint
Full-text available
Self-determination theory (SDT), a psychological theory of human motivation, is a prominent paradigm in human-computer interaction (HCI) research on games. However, our prior literature review observed a trend towards shallow applications of the theory. This follow-up work takes a broader view -- examining SDT scholarship on games, a wider corpus of SDT-based HCI games research (N=259), and perspectives from a games industry practitioner conference -- to help explain current applications of SDT. Our findings suggest that perfunctory applications of the theory in HCI games research originate in part from within SDT scholarship on games, which itself exhibits limited engagement with theoretical tenets. Against this backdrop, we unpack the popularity of SDT in HCI games research and identify conditions underlying the theory's current use as an oft-unquestioned paradigm. Finally, we outline avenues for more productive SDT-informed games research and consider ways towards more intentional practices of theory use in HCI.
... Notably, mindfulness can foster components of flow such as happiness, joy, and focused attention (Scott-Hamilton et al., 2016). But mindfulness also contributes to the maintaining of self-awareness within an activity, while flow is linked to losing of self-awareness and an enhanced sense of being absorbed within an activity (Sheldon et al., 2015). Both losing selfawareness and enhanced sense of being absorbed are characteristics of 'telepresence' . ...
Article
Social media use (SMU) is a significant part of many people’s everyday life. Research around the globe describes an increase of addictive SMU tendencies since the COVID-19 outbreak. The present work combines available findings in the “Vicious Circle of addictive Social Media Use and Mental Health” model to explain how social media (SM) activity can contribute to the development of addictive tendencies, which consequences they have for mental health, and how to prevent them. Following the model, the interplay between the risk factors negative experiences caused by daily hassles and by unexpected global and traumatic events, SMU (dimension “quality”), and SM flow can directly contribute to addictive SMU through the “vicious circle”. Time spent on SMU (dimension “quantity”), symptoms of depression and anxiety, and the personality trait narcissism contribute to the circle as moderators. Symptoms of stress, insomnia, and suicide-related outcomes are described as potential consequences of addictive SMU. Based on longitudinal intervention studies, a conscious reduction of SMU time and an increase of physical activity, as well as positive mental health and mindfulness are identified as protective factors that reduce the risk of addictive tendencies. The model contributes to a better understanding of addictive SMU. Implications of the model for future research and praxis, specifically for mental health programs and therapeutic treatment are discussed.
Chapter
Mindfulness can be defined as awareness and focus on the present. General well-being is important for all individuals including employees of the tourism industry. It is a point of view that has recently been accepted by both researchers and managers that optimal employee performance in the tourism industry is possible not by overloading employees with work but by improving employee motivation and well-being. The fact that uncertainty cannot be avoided in the industry and the majority of the employees are required to provide effective solutions, to customer concerns and needs in a short time, can put a mental strain on tourism employees. The aim of this study is to reveal the importance of mindfulness in tourism employees. The concept of mindfulness and its importance for tourism employees are scrutinized and insights are offered on how to reduce negative emotions and increase positive emotions in tourism employees.
Article
Full-text available
Self-determination theory (SDT), a psychological theory of human motivation, is a prominent paradigm in human-computer interaction (HCI) research on games. However, our prior literature review observed a trend towards shallow applications of the theory. This follow-up work takes a broader view – examining SDT scholarship on games, a wider corpus of SDT-based HCI games research (N=259), and perspectives from a games industry practitioner conference – to help explain current applications of SDT. Our findings suggest that perfunctory applications of the theory in HCI games research originate in part from within SDT scholarship on games, which itself exhibits limited engagement with theoretical tenets. Against this backdrop, we unpack the popularity of SDT in HCI games research and identify conditions underlying the theory's current use as an oft-unquestioned paradigm. Finally, we outline avenues for more productive SDT-informed games research and consider ways towards more intentional practices of theory use in HCI.
Article
The construct of mindfulness appears to be compatible with theories of flow and peak performance in sport. The present study assessed how Mindful Sport Performance Enhancement (MSPE), a new 4-week program, affected flow states, performance, and psychological characteristics of 11 archers and 21 golfers from the community. Participants completed trait measures of anxiety, perfectionism, thought disruption, confidence, mindfulness, and flow. They additionally provided data on their performances and state levels of mindfulness and flow. Analyses revealed that some significant changes in dimensions of the trait variables occurred during the training. Levels of state flow attained by the athletes also increased between the first and final sessions. The findings suggest that MSPE is a promising intervention to enhance flow, mindfulness, and aspects of sport confidence. An expanded workshop to allot more time for mindfulness practice is recommended for future studies.
Article
Organizational researchers are increasingly interested in model ing the multilevel nature of organizational data. Although most organi zational researchers have chosen to investigate these models using traditional Ordinary Least Squares approaches, hierarchical linear models (i.e., random coefficient models) recently have been receiving increased attention. One of the key questions in using hierarchical linear models is how a researcher chooses to scale the Level-1 indepen dent variables (e.g., raw metric, grand mean centering, group mean centering), because it directly influences the interpretation of both the level-1 and level-2 parameters. Several scaling options are reviewed and discussed in light of four paradigms of multilevellcross-level research in organizational science: incremental (i.e., group variables add incremental prediction to individual level outcomes over and above individual level predictors), mediational (i.e., the influence of group level variables on individual outcomes are mediated by individual perceptions), moderational (i.e., the relationship between two individ ual level variables is moderated by a group level variable), and sepa rate (i.e., separate within group and between group models). The paper concludes with modeling recommendations for each of these paradigms and discusses the importance of matching the paradigm under which one is operating to the appropriate modeling strategy.
Article
This chapter describes flow, the experience of complete absorption in the present moment, and the experiential approach to positive psychology that it represents. We summarize the model of optimal experience and development that is associated with the concept of flow, and describe several ways of measuring flow, giving particular attention to the experience sampling method. We review some of the recent research concerning the outcomes and dynamics of flow, its conditions at school and work, and interventions that have been employed to foster flow. Finally, we identify some of the promising directions for flow research moving into the future.
Article
The Flow State Scale-2 (FSS-2) and Dispositional Flow Scale-2 (DFS-2) are presented as two self-report instruments designed to assess flow experiences in physical activity. Item modifications were made to the original versions of these scales in order to improve the measurement of some of the flow dimensions. Confirmatory factor analyses of an item identification and a cross-validation sample demonstrated a good fit of the new scales. There was support for both a 9-first-order factor model and a higher order model with a global flow factor. The item identification sample yielded mean item loadings on the first-order factor of .78 for the FSS-2 and .77 for the DFS-2. Reliability estimates ranged from .80 to .90 for the FSS-2, and .81 to .90 for the DFS-2. In the cross-validation sample, mean item loadings on the first-order factor were .80 for the FSS-2, and .73 for the DFS-2. Reliability estimates ranged between .80 to .92 for the FSS-2 and .78 to .86 for the DFS-2. The scales are presented as ways of assessing flow experienced within a particular event (FSS-2) or the frequency of flow experiences in chosen physical activity in general (DFS-2).
Chapter
This chapter focuses on the specific autotelic quality and the affective, cognitive, and performance-related consequences of the flow experience. Research findings documenting a positive relationship between skills–demands compatibility (the central precondition of flow experiences) and components of an autotelic experience (intrinsic motivation, enjoyment, and involvement) are discussed. Besides, possible consequences of flow experiences are addressed. A review of currently available findings indicates that flow may foster positive affect and even lead to enhanced performance. Unfortunately, the findings, which are mostly correlational in nature, do not provide conclusive evidence regarding the consequences related to flow experiences—reflecting the fact that the empirical analysis of flow experiences is quite complex. Important intricacies of flow research and theorizing and their implications are discussed—specifically, the lack of methods to test for causal effects of flow experiences and the tendency to equate flow experience with skills–demands compatibility.