SMILING MIND IN THE WORKPLACE 1 Smiling Mind in the Workplace An Evaluation of a Positive Psychology Intervention Psychology of Wellbeing - PSY30011 Assessment 2: Evaluation
SMILING MIND IN THE WORKPLACE 2 Positive psychology interventions are changing the way people are not only treated in health care settings, but how they live their day to day lives. One way which the people of Australia are engaging in this relatively new realm of positive psychology is through the Smiling Mind program. Smiling Mind has been developed for the young, the old, the in between and also in both education settings and workplaces. It utilises the concepts of mindfulness and meditation to assist people to pay attention to the present moment with curiosity and openness and without judgement (Smiling Mind, 2018). The Smiling Mind intervention believes there are two parts to mindfulness. The first, attention, involves being able to focus on one thing, and also being able to return attention to this if the mind is distracted. The second, attitude, refers to the attitude a person has in regards to paying attention (Smiling Mind, 2018). It requires people to have an open attitude to distractions, that is, to not supress them but rather bring their attention back to the prior focus, whether that be breathing, a visualisation or mantra (Johnson, 2012). The ability to focus on the present moment, experiencing the situation a person finds themselves in without reacting to it or holding judgement, is central to mindfulness and programs similar to Smiling Mind. By being able to focus on sensations or breathing during daily tasks like showering or washing dishes without letting the mind wander, people are able to practice mindfulness in a less formal way and Johnson (2012) explains that this means mindfulness can also be a way of life, rather than just something practiced periodically. There is no doubt that an immediate sense of relaxation is a benefit to the meditative process, however studies are showing that there are other benefits to practicing mindfulness including a decrease in stress and improved mental performance. Positive psychology interventions similar to Smiling Mind, which focus heavily on achieving mindfulness through meditation, have shown to benefit productivity in the workplace in multiple ways but one is
SMILING MIND IN THE WORKPLACE 3 by improving concentration. A 2018 study by David Karlin identified there were increased levels of concentration and a decreased tendency to procrastinate when participants underwent either daily or weekly mindfulness exercises. He explained that the reason for this was that participants who practiced mindfulness were able to develop skills to capitalise on their ability to both reduce the amount of stress felt and better handle stress when it arose, and this was valid for at home and in the work place (Karlin, 2018). It can be inferred therefore, that mindfulness is effective in creating a happier and more cohesive work environment allowing for greater productivity. Similarly, and suggesting that interventions like Smiling Mind are effective in reducing stress and developing stress