Promoting mindfulness in education: Scientisation, psychology and epistemic capital

Abstract

Mindfulness is increasingly found in many educational settings in the United Kingdom, but existing research has focused primarily on clinical efficacy or implementation issues, rather than sociological interests. This article draws on data from the ‘Mapping Mindfulness in the UK’ study to help explain the successful growth of mindfulness in education, by exploring the discursive strategies through which practitioners construct, promote and solicit support for the practice among policymakers and educational leaders. The analysis highlights the significance of certain authorities or epistemic capitals, and logics of ‘scientisation’, for positioning mindfulness as a credible and legitimate practice for educational contexts, yet also reveals competing discourses and alternative conceptualisations. In doing so, it extends theories of ‘scientisation’ by explicating the role of ‘harder’ and ‘softer’ forms of psychology within these processes. The research makes original contributions to sociological understandings of mindfulness and education, while offering new insights on broader theories concerning science and society.