Abstract/Description/Artist Statement
In an era shaped by the attention economy and digital technology, students in higher education navigate constant stimulation that fragments attention, increases stress, and challenges emotional regulation. Research in psychology and neuroscience suggests that chronic exposure to social media, AI tools, and multitasking environments contributes to divided attention and diminished cognitive performance. While institutional responses, such as phone bans, attempt to manage distraction, they often fail to cultivate the internal capacities necessary for sustained focus and meaningful learning.
This paper argues that contemplative education--grounded in Buddhist and Hindu contemplative traditions and informed by humanistic psychology and contemporary mindfulness-based interventions--offers a transformative pedagogical response. Through interdisciplinary case studies, I examine how practices such as meditation, breathwork, reflective writing, silence, and contemplative art enhance student attention, social-emotional learning, and critical engagement.
By integrating mindfulness into higher education, contemplative pedagogy reframes learning as a practice of awareness and presence, offering students tools to reclaim focus and restore depth in a technologically saturated age.
Faculty Advisor/Mentor
Nicole Willock
Faculty Advisor/Mentor Email
nwillock@odu.edu
Faculty Advisor/Mentor Department
Philosophy & Religious Studies
College/School Affiliation
College of Arts & Letters
Student Level Group
Graduate/Professional
Presentation Type
Oral Presentation
From TikTok to Transcendence: Reclaiming Focus Through Contemplative Education
In an era shaped by the attention economy and digital technology, students in higher education navigate constant stimulation that fragments attention, increases stress, and challenges emotional regulation. Research in psychology and neuroscience suggests that chronic exposure to social media, AI tools, and multitasking environments contributes to divided attention and diminished cognitive performance. While institutional responses, such as phone bans, attempt to manage distraction, they often fail to cultivate the internal capacities necessary for sustained focus and meaningful learning.
This paper argues that contemplative education--grounded in Buddhist and Hindu contemplative traditions and informed by humanistic psychology and contemporary mindfulness-based interventions--offers a transformative pedagogical response. Through interdisciplinary case studies, I examine how practices such as meditation, breathwork, reflective writing, silence, and contemplative art enhance student attention, social-emotional learning, and critical engagement.
By integrating mindfulness into higher education, contemplative pedagogy reframes learning as a practice of awareness and presence, offering students tools to reclaim focus and restore depth in a technologically saturated age.