Mindfulness meditation and curiosity: The contributing factors to wellbeing and the process of closing the self-discrepancy gap

Abstract

Actual/ideal self-discrepancy is the measurable difference between an individual's beliefs about who they think they are (actual self) and their image of the person they would ideally like to be (ideal self). When the self-discrepancy gap is small, higher psychological wellbeing exists. Mindfulness meditation, by means of greater awareness of the continuous fluctuation of thought from one point to another, has been shown to increase self-acceptance, which can lead to minimizing self-discrepancy. Additionally, curiosity is an important third factor in motivating the change required to reduce self-discrepancy. This study hypothesises that mindfulness meditation reduces actual-ideal self-discrepancy. Additionally, it hypothesises that higher trait curiosity will lead to a larger reduction in self-discrepancy. One hundred and twenty participants took part in a mindfulness meditation course. Before and after this, participants completed a Selves questionnaire and the Curiosity and Exploration Inventory. The findings confirm that mindfulness meditation can effectively reduce the gap between actual/ideal self attributes. In addition, curiosity is an influencing factor in making the largest changes in self-discrepancy after meditation.