Philosophical Exercises

     Why mindfulness in schools does not work      A large and rigorous study 1 has examined the efficacy of mindfulness interventions in UK schools and has concluded that, contrary to expectations, they failed to improve the mental health of the students, aged 11-16 . It was an impressive project, which « spanned over eight years, from 2015 to 2023, and involved more than 28,000 students, 650 teachers, 100 schools and 20 million data points. » 2      I s it a puzzling result ? If we believe mindfulness to be formative and to bring tranquility to its practitioners, should we be surprised by this?      I just read an article that sheds a lot of light on that issue, in my opinion. I’d like to share that good work, and to talk a bit about how it resonates with my own research on the matter. The bottom line is this : if this study should be pivotal, it is in that it should act as a magnifying glass that re...

Georges Friedmann            How philosophical exercises can improve lives           If you are on a path to improving your life, people will, at some point, offer you « philosophical exercises » to practice. For instance, they might ask you to reflect , throughout the day,  on the fact that life is short, so that you might stay motivated in the right way. Or else, they will offer a thought experiment to consider at pivotal moments; for example « What if money didn’t exist, what would you do with your life then ? » . But the offering isn’t limited to memory and imagination.  Philosophical exercises also include contemplative activity, such as meditation geared towards paying better attention, and analytical activity, such as reasoning geared towards thinking more clearly in order to be happier. Similarly, any technique that aims at fostering a specific feeling, like gratitude, or joy, is fai...