긍정적 정서가 심리적 자본 및 마음챙김에 미치는 영향: 심신수련 프로그램의 효과

Abstract

기쁨, 사랑, 평화, 만족과 같은 긍정적 정서가 개인의 심리적, 정서적, 신체적 자원 형성에 미치는 영향에 주목하는 심리학계의 최신 연구들이 경영현장에서 응용되고 있다. 인기를 끌고 있는 웃음 치료, 펀 경영과 같은 교육 프로그램들이 그 예라 할 수 있다. 본 연구는 긍정심리학의 주요 주제를 소개하는 강의, 스트레칭 및 명상 실습, 그리고 일상생활에서 긍정정서를 유도 하는 과제로 구성된 매주 1회씩 100분, 총 15회에 걸친 심신수련 프로그램이 대학생들의 긍정적 정서 경험 빈도와 개인적 자원 형성에 미치는 영향을 분석한다. 연구의 근거가 되는 ‘긍정적 정서의 확장-형성 이론’(Fredrickson, 1998; 2001)은 국내에서는 아직 종단적 실험을 통해 검증된 사례가 없다. 본 연구는 두 차례에 걸친 실험조사를 통해 이 이론의 타당성을 확인하고 기업, 학교, 스포츠 단체 등 다양한 조직에서 구성원들의 수행성과(performance)를 높일 수 있는 심신수련 프로그램의 가능성을 탐색해 본다.

The psychological capital is one of an individual's personal assets that Fredrickson(1998) argues are important in our survival. She maintains that frequent experiences of positive emotions such as pleasure, love, peace and satisfaction would first broaden his/her ‘thought-action repertoire’ that in turn lead to build his/her psychological, cognitive, emotional and physical resources. Mindfulness is another kind of mental asset that Fredrickson mentions as a by-product of frequent positive emotions. It is often defined as 'non-judgmental awareness' or 'keeping attention to the present moment experiences with a non-judgmental attitude'. It has been one of the most actively investigated subjects in the recent psychology literatures and consistently related to the physical and psychological illness or wellness variables. For example, mindfulness is associated with lower levels of emotional disturbances (e.g., depressive symptoms, anxiety, and stress), higher levels of subjective well-being (lower negative emotions, and satisfaction with life) and higher levels of eudemonic wellbeing (e.g., self-actualization). This study has two objectives. First it investigates if a 15 week, 2 credit hour mind-body training program would increase the college students' positive emotions. Second, it tests the validity of the 'Broaden and Build Theory of Positive Emotions'. It examines if the increased positive emotions through the training would gradually build the students' psychological capital and mindfulness. The mind-body program was designed by the first author of this research by referring to the MBSR(Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction, Kabat-Zinn 1990) and K-MBSR(장현갑 2004). It consists of three parts; 20 minute lecture on positive psychology subjects, 10 minute meditation (mindfulness and loving-kindness), and an hour Kooksundo Danjun Breathing (stretching, Danjun breathing and physical exercises). Study I was conducted in the fall semester of 2010. The research design was a Before and Post Between Group Difference. The experimental group had 72 students (male 40, female 32) while the control group had 88 students (male 36, female 52). As expected the between group differences were significant (p < .05). Accordingly it was concluded that the mind-body program was effective to increase the positive emotions and to decrease the negative emotions. Study II was conducted in the fall semester of 2011. The research design was the same as in Study I but there were three observations; the first week of the semester, the 8th week and the 15th week. The number of samples used in the final analysis were 53 (experimental group) and 38(control group). After confirming that the program was effective to increase the positive emotions and decrease the negative emotions of the experimental group, the two hypotheses were tested by applying the LTM (Latent Trajectory Model) and Path Analysis. The data supported the two hypotheses; the increases in both the psychological capital and the mindfulness were followed by the increase in the positive emotions. This study has two contributions. First it is the first experimental study in Korea to test the theoretical validity of the Broaden and Build Theory of the Positive Emotions. Second, the study shows that a total of 25 hour mind-body training program can increase the participant's psychological capital and mindfulness. The study has three major limitations. First, a follow-up test after the final measurement was not administered. Second, the participants were students enrolled in the academic course. A future study using a general public is needed. Third, the study did not investigate the program's individual element's effect. For example, it did not try to measure the impact of the instructor. To develop a better training program, a more rigorous study is needed.