Political strife, immigration, cultural and racial conflict, environmental concerns, depression, and distraction—these issues and many more influence our daily lives as we struggle to find personal well-being and social harmony. How does the latest research on mental habits, contemplation, and compassion inform opportunities to create change for ourselves and others?
The 2019 Mind & Life Summer Research Institute addresses critical questions that are at the core of understanding contemplative practices and interventions, and how they can reduce suffering and cultivate individual and social flourishing. We define mental habits as perceptual, emotional, and cognitive processes that shape and bias how we perceive self, others, and the world. Here we focus on those habits that tend to support individual, cultural, and institutional behaviors that result in suffering and a lack of compassion and equity.
How do such mental habits impact behavior? How can we change such habits through individual and structural contemplative interventions? We will discuss sophisticated methods and measurement strategies for assessing mechanisms of change.
This theme extends the arc from the 2016, 2017, and 2018 programs that addressed contemplation in relation to context, social connectivity, intersubjectivity, cultural diversity, and pressing problems related to human health and well-being, social harmony and integration, and fair, just, and equitable societies.
Program Sessions
2019 Summer Research Institute Session
Breaking Habits: Self-Transcendence and Health Behavior Change
Yoona Kang
Topics: Brain & Cognitive Science | Mental Health | Self & Other
2019 Summer Research Institute Session
Contemplative Practices
Alisa Dennis, Larry Yang
Topics: Body-based Practices | Contemplative Wisdom | Mindfulness
2019 Summer Research Institute Session
Dismantling Oppression from the Inside Out
Doris F. Chang
Topics: Education | Mindfulness | Social Change
2019 Summer Research Institute Session
From Looking Out to Looking In: Re-Thinking How We Study and Train Attention in Mental Health
Amit Bernstein
Topics: Brain & Cognitive Science | Mental Health | Mindfulness
2019 Summer Research Institute Session
How Thinking About Thinking Shapes the Human Experience of Spirit
Tanya Luhrmann
Topics: Contemplative Wisdom | Mental Health
2019 Summer Research Institute Session
Interdisciplinary Panel: Translating Neuroscience
Moderators: Andrew Dreitcer, Elissa Epel
Panel: Anil Seth, Clifford Saron, Daniel Siegel, Lawrence Barsalou, Yoona Kang, Norman Farb, Elissa Epel, Andrew Dreitcer
Topics: Brain & Cognitive Science | Education
2019 Summer Research Institute Session
Measuring, Understanding, and Changing Mental Habits
Lawrence Barsalou
Topics: Brain & Cognitive Science | Mental Health | Mindfulness
2019 Summer Research Institute Session
Mental Habits, Prediction Machines, and Controlled Hallucinations
Anil Seth
Topics: Brain & Cognitive Science | Mental Health
2019 Summer Research Institute Session
The Quest for Serenity Among the Disenfranchised
Zenju Earthlyn Manuel
Topics: Contemplative Wisdom | Mental Health | Social Change
Gallery
Plenary Faculty
Plenary faculty deliver lectures and are available to answer attendee questions throughout the week, often leading breakout sessions and participating in panel discussions. Their lectures expand on the week’s theme, deepening and broadening our shared knowledge from a variety of experiences, backgrounds, and disciplines.
Lawrence Barsalou
University of Glasgow
Convening Faculty
Lawrence Barsalou is professor of psychology at the University of Glasgow in the Institute of Neuroscience and Psychology. He received a B.A. in psychology from the University of California, San … MORE
Amit Bernstein, Ph.D.
University of Haifa
Convening Faculty, Grantee, Planning Committee Member, Reviewer
Amit Bernstein (Co-Chair), PhD, is a Professor of Psychology, Director of the Observing Minds Lab at the University of Haifa, and member of the Israel Young Academy. Amit is interested … MORE
Doris F. Chang, PhD
New York University
Convening Faculty, Grantee, Mentor, Reviewer
Dr. Chang is a licensed clinical psychologist and Associate Professor in the NYU Silver School of Social Work. Her research seeks to advance the well-being of BIPOC communities by understanding … MORE
Yoona Kang, PhD
University of Pennsylvania
Convening Faculty, Grantee, Reviewer
Yoona Kang’s research investigates psychological and neural mechanisms that support the development and changes in social cognition, emotions, and health outcomes. Her main research interests are in 1) linking social … MORE
Tanya Luhrmann, PhD
Stanford University
Tanya Marie Luhrmann is the Watkins University Professor at Stanford University, in the Stanford Anthropology Department. Her work focuses on the edge of experience: on voices, visions, the world of … MORE
Zenju Earthlyn Manuel
Still Breathing Zen Sangha
Convening Faculty
Zenju Earthlyn Manuel is an author and ordained Zen priest. The essence of all her transmissions come together in her teachings including these books, “Sanctuary: A Meditation on Home, Homelessness, … MORE
john a. powell, JD
University of California, Berkeley
Convening Faculty
john a. powell is Director of the Othering and Belonging Institute and Professor of Law, African American, and Ethnic Studies at the University of California, Berkeley. He was previously the … MORE
Anil Seth, Ph.D.
University of Sussex, UK
Convening Faculty
Anil Seth is professor of cognitive and computational neuroscience at the University of Sussex and founding co-director of the Sackler Centre for Consciousness Science. His research group investigates the biological … MORE
Contemplative Faculty
Contemplative faculty guide participants through practices that integrate their first-person knowledge with themes being explored, interspersing contemplative practice sessions with free time for personal reflection. In addition to daily practice, the contemplative faculty lead the retreat time.
Larry Yang
Spirit Rock
Larry Yang teaches mindfulness and loving kindness retreats nationally and has a special interest in creating access to the dharma for diverse multicultural communities. Larry has practiced meditation for almost … MORE
Alisa Dennis, Ph.D.
Spirit Rock
Alisa Dennis discovered meditation through her study of metaphysics and ancient Christian mystical traditions. She practiced within the S.N. Goenka tradition of Vipassana, then studied mindfulness through the Mindful Awareness … MORE
Laura Schmalzl, PhD
Southern California University of Health Sciences
Convening Faculty, Grantee, Reviewer
Laura Schmalzl is an associate professor at Southern California University of Health Sciences, where she teaches neuroscience, research methods, and yoga foundations for healthcare professionals. Laura initially trained as a … MORE
Peter Wayne, PhD
Harvard Medical School
Convening Faculty, Fellow
Peter Wayne, PhD, is a researcher and practitioner in the field of mind-body and integrative medicine. Dr. Wayne is the Bernard Osher Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School … MORE
Discussants and Breakout & Affinity Group Facilitators
Discussants and group facilitators lead or co-lead a variety of small group sessions, which may include presentations, group dialogue, open question and answer sessions, or tutorials. They may also participate in panel discussions and meet with attendees individually.
Chris Kaplan, M.A.
Canticle Farm
Kirat Randhawa
Columbia University
Juan Santoyo
Universidad de Antioquia; Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Grantee, Planning Committee Member, Reviewer
Daniel Siegel, MD
UCLA School of Medicine
Program Planning Committee
The Program Planning Committee (PPC) is a committee of invited specialists from diverse disciplines and perspectives who bring their expertise to curate and produce the content for the Summer Research Institute. In addition to developing the overall theme and narrative arc of the program, the PPC actively participate in SRI and serve as leader for small group discussions. Rob Roeser and Elissa Epel are co-chairs of this year’s Program Planning Committee.
Robert Roeser, PhD, MSW
Pennsylvania State University
Convening Faculty, Planning Committee Member, Research and Programs Council Member, Reviewer
Elissa Epel, PhD
University of California, San Francisco
Convening Faculty, Fellow, Planning Committee Member, Reviewer
Clifford Saron, PhD
University of California, Davis
Convening Faculty, Fellow, Planning Committee Member
About the Summer Research Institute
The purpose of the Mind and Life Summer Research Institute is to advance collaborative research among scientists, contemplative scholars, other humanities scholars, and contemplative practitioners, based on a process of inquiry and dialogue. With this unique program, we are not only nurturing a new generation of scientists interested in exploring the influence of contemplative practice and meditation on mind, behavior, brain function and health, but are also fostering the development of nascent research fields collectively referred to as “contemplative studies” (including contemplative neuroscience, contemplative clinical science, contemplative education, and contemplative scholarship).
