Mindfulness And Digitization 

“The ability to focus for a few minutes on a single raisin isn’t silly if the skills it requires are the keys to surviving and succeeding in the 21st century,” (Pickert, 2014) this quote from the author of the article “The Mindful Revolution” in the Time Magazine clearly explains the current situation of the world, which indicates that due to the observation of the 21st century, the 3rd millennium brought innovations and changed the perception of the world we live in and the possessions that surround us. The technologies we use are interrelated with extreme speed encouraging people’s boundaries, opportunities, and perhaps built obstacles for our lives in which we tend to get lost by not setting our attentions well enough. Mechanical improvements are quick, changing how we advise ourselves, how we convey, how we expend - namely, how we perceive and live (cf. Kernighan, 2017). We certainly have come to a degree was technology - especially, being enclosed by touchscreens and computers - have become an integral part of our daily lives.

For instance, be it in economic, social, labor and/or at home. Hence, mindfulness practice from Buddhist traditions (Karunamuni & Weerasekera, 2017), seen as a significant technique to potentially bring us back to the grounds of our selves. Moreover, living in a world where everything is constantly moving faster, some studies state that the digital life will generally mischief our well-being, mental fitness and happiness (cf. Przybylski & Weinstein, 2017). Hence, the next generation is becoming increasingly dependent on technology and no longer maintaining abilities once considered necessary (cf. Turner, 2015; Steiner-Adair & Barker, 2014). According to numerous Kaiser Family Foundation studies children and teenager’s consumption of media and technology devices have boosted in the past 5-10 years. In the report of 2010, it shows that 8 - 18-year-old spent up to 7. 5 hours each day using media (Rideout, Foehr, & Roberts, 2010). This essay deals with the concept of the affect’s digitization carry on us humans whilst constantly overreacting to external stimuli.

Thus, how mindfulness could be seen as a technique to counteract the effect of digitalization by decreasing attention spans (Brown & Ryan, 2003, p. 822) and “mindfulness training modifies subsystems of attention” (Jha, Krompinger, & Baime, 2007, p. 109) to investigate in this hypothesis, two minor research questions are claimed: First, how does mindfulness work as a tool to counteract the effects of digitization and technology including decreased attention spans? And second, what are the benefits of society as a whole if more people practice mindfulness? To begin with, the basic definition of digitization - also known as a phase of radical development as well as the consequences it carries on our daily lives - is explained in Chapter 2. Chapter 3 deals with the concept of mindfulness - based on the consideration of mindfulness from the perspective of Buddhism traditions - by going in depth and explaining the connection between mindfulness and attention; furthermore, analysing the core function of mindfulness practice, the sources in which mindfulness is offered today as well as the Mindfulness-Based-Stress Reduction Programm. Chapter 4 gives a view into the benefits mindfulness practice brings along with the idea of mindfulness as a somewhat solution for the overuse of smartphone usage. The aspect of the contrary of digital meditation apps and the idea of mindfulness in the 21st century, which is so called the “Mindfulness Movement” (Pickert 2014). Finally, the results are summarized conclusively in chapter 6.