| Mindfulness is a key skill that produces the greater psychological awareness identified by most leadership scholars as being essential to effective leadership. This study conducted an exploratory assessment of the effectiveness of mindfulness-based cocurricular collegiate leadership programs through pre- and post-participation application of the Kentucky Inventory of Mindfulness Skills (KIMS). The Social Change Model (SCM) of leadership development was used to represent mindfulness-based leadership programs due to an emphasis upon mindfulness and psychological self awareness. This quantitative study made use of a 2 x 2 mixed ANOVA and analyzed change in scores to identify the progress made towards the learning goal of mindfulness. Matched pre- and posttests were collected from 213 participants (103 SCM, 109 Non-SCM) who had participated in 1 of 6 different cocurricular collegiate leadership programs (3 SCM oriented, 3 Non-SCM oriented).;Findings identified that there was no correlation between participation in a leadership program---be it SCM or Non-SCM oriented---and mindfulness. The sole statistically significant difference was found in the change in scores, wherein SCM participants scored significantly higher than Non-SCM participants; however, this was primarily due to a decrease in mindfulness among the Non-SCM group. Two other findings included indications of a positive correlation between mindfulness and participation in either meditation or therapy/counseling. A change in focus of the leadership literature and the re-structuring of leadership programs appear as the two most basic changes recommended to produce leadership programs that increase mindfulness. |
