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Feb 26, 2009:
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Ellen Langer

From Mindlessness to Mindfulness


Information may be true independent of context, such as gravity but most information we use relies on context to interpret and use.  Fair skin on a person has no intrinsic value if we discuss winter clothing but has a great deal of value when discussing sun exposure in summer.  To treat information as context-free, that is, independent of circumstances, places us at risk for mindless thoughts, decisions, and behaviors.  Placing information within context leads to mindfulness.

Mindlessness develops from automatic behaviors, repetition, and use of a single perspective.  Automatic behavior and repetition have a negative influence on our thinking.  Though they both allow us to perform several tasks simultaneously, they move our attention toward the structure of the situation rather than content.  Structure then gains an inordinate influence on thought than content and context.  This also develops when we act from a single perspective or point of view.  We may not solicit alternative ideas or we request specific help rather than the more generalized “Can you help me?”  As stated by George Patton, GEN, US Army, “Never tell people how to do things.  Tell them what to do and they will surprise you with their ingenuity.”

Mindlessness develops from the pursuit of outcome over process and the belief in limited resources.  Pursuit of outcome, “Can I?” or “What if I cannot?” creates an anxious preoccupation with success of failure at the expense of exploration and creativity.  Decreased creativity contributes to belief in limited resources, “What can they do to help me?”  More common with novices in high risk situations is the fatal belief “If I have not seen it then it cannot happen.”

Mindlessness develops when we disregard the power of context and become trapped by categories.  The power of context can impede information flow when we discount information because of who is giving it to us.  We may consider information only as an answer to a question.  Almost like functional fixedness (a wrench functions as a wrench and cannot be used as a hammer), without the specific question the information has no value.  We omit other points of view and other ways to look at a problem are lost.  We create categories with distinctions that may or may not be artificial or subjective but which lead us to use rigidly for problem solving.

Mindlessness has costs to individuals and the organization.  A focus on outcomes will narrow our self-image to a limited number of things we do.  We accept our labels, “I am just the medical student,” “I am just the firefighter,” and do not see that we have the qualifications to identify, report, or engage a problem or situation.  Becoming trapped by categories also permits us to incrementally change the way we act which can result in normalization of deviance or drift in quality, safety, and reliability.  In one form, it results in unintended cruelty, “If you do not understand what I ask, you are not smart.”  In another serious form it creates loss of control when we attribute failure or crisis to a single cause.  Fixing that cause does not resolve the crisis or make the problem go away.  We give up or accept the new circumstances as inevitable.

Nature of mindfulness; applications in creativity and work

Mindfulness welcomes new information and focuses on the process used rather than on the outcome.  Worry about the outcome of a child’s behavior, house fire, military battle, or investment can lead one to automatic behavior that rigidly follows rules and draws on only one’s own or an authority’s perspective. However, focus on process can increase one’s control of the situation and help us change our interpretation of the context we experience.  Multiple points of view enhance our efforts and how we view the situation.  Mindfulness then develops.
New information, process, and multiple points of view lead to creativity and innovation, which contribute to the state of mindfulness.  Situations that are novel to the beginner as benefit from mindful thinking as will situations novel to the expert.  This occurs because novel situations do not always respond as expected.  Planning may fail and even endanger people as the organization rigidly follows the plan in a newly emerging or unexpected situation.   
Mindfulness and focus on process make the work more absorbing and pleasurable but most of all they give satisfaction.  Pleasure and happiness are passive emotions that happen to us while satisfaction involves an active pursuit.  Satisfaction results from adapting to a new situation or solving a novel problem and occurs in a different part of the brain than happiness or pleasure.  Mindful learning and problem solving are more likely to bring satisfaction and self-motivation. 

In dynamic states mindfulness develops a new dimension.  Anticipation has greater effectiveness and focus on process, rather than outcome, leads to containment of the situation as a goal of the individuals.

 

Langer, Ellen J. Mindfulness. Cambridge, MA: De Capo Press, 1989

Langer, Ellen J. The Power of Mindful Learning. Cambridge, MA: De Capo Press, 1997