Research provides tools for achieving the ‘how’ of well-being in daily life

In exciting news, The Healthy Minds Framework (Awareness, Connection, Insight and Purpose), has been published in The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

A growing mental health crisis is the “second wave” of health issues that experts anticipate due to the prolonged stress of the COVID-19 pandemic. In a recent Kaiser Family Foundation Tracking poll from July, 53 percent of U.S. adults reported that their mental health had been negatively affected by worry and stress over the pandemic – up from 32 percent reported in March.

Organizations and communities are looking for practical tools to support mental health amidst this growing crisis, which is taking place alongside ongoing social and racial unrest. In a recently published paper in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers at the University of Wisconsin–Madison introduce a new framework for emotional well-being that focuses on specific skills that can be learned.

The framework is based on scientific evidence that suggests well-being can be cultivated through practice in daily life.

Let’s break down the findings. What do we mean when we say our minds can actually change for the better? Take a deep dive into the science of the four pillars of well-being: Awareness, Connection, Insight and Purpose. For the most comprehensive view, you can also check out the full copy of the paper or the write up on our colleagues’ at the Center for Healthy Minds’ website.

Remember, you can put this science into practice by downloading the Healthy Minds Program app, a guided meditation app featuring Awareness, Connection, Insight and Purpose as four separate modules. To go even deeper, consider signing up for the Healthy Minds MasterClass.