Cultivating Global Health: Exploring Mindfulness Through an Organisational Psychology Lens

Abstract

The interface of public health and mindfulness as presented in Oman’s review (Mindfulness for Global Public Health: Critical Analysis and Agenda) holds great promise and reveals fertile ground for future research and interdisciplinary exploration. Oman’s framework is supported by compelling arguments, offering a balanced critique of mindfulness that identifies genuine applications and potential. This commentary notes key ideas in Oman’s paper that carry important lessons for organisational research on mindfulness and explores how organisational psychology research and theory can contribute to this proposed integration of mindfulness into global health efforts. It begins by reviewing the close relationships between work, mindfulness, and health, identifying commonalities between mindfulness, health, and organisational research. This is followed by an illustration of organisational psychology’s potential contributions to the alignment of mindfulness and health, focused on 2 of the 14 dimensions proposed by Oman (Concern for Equity and Addresses Attentional Environments). The commentary then draws on recent research and theoretical developments in mindfulness research within the workplace context to discuss the role of resilience and challenges in measuring mindfulness. Overall, this commentary aims to provide insights for organisational research while contributing to the integration of mindfulness and public health.