Hello! My name is Tyler. I am the Assessment and Development Coordinator for the University at Albany Libraries. I am also a Librarian in Training with the University at Albany's MS in Information Science program! My research interests address mindfulness-based stress reduction for college students in general, with a special focus on how academic libraries support mindfulness initiatives in particular. I have practiced mindfulness regularly since 2016.
“Like it or not, this moment is all we really have to work with.”
- Jon Kabat-Zinn
Let's face it: being a college student today is stressful business. You have to attend class, do homework, pass exams, write papers, apply for internships, work a part-time job (or three), join clubs, take on leadership positions in said clubs, build a personal brand, make friends, socialize, manage family obligations, and at some point in the day sleep. Those pressures would overwhelm seasoned professionals, let alone twentysomethings.
According to the National Survey of Student Engagement (2024), 67% of sampled first-year students cited mental or emotional exhaustion as a difficulty during the academic year. For context, that percentage is higher than the stressors usually targeted by colleges with programmatic interventions, such as financial difficulties (60%), loneliness (48%), and homesickness (31%). This is both bad and easy to fix.
Mindfulness can go a long way towards reducing stress and improving wellbeing. This library guide will introduce students to the mindfulness through practical resources, scientific literature, as well as strategies for further research.
Mindfulness may seem difficult to approach at first. The very term 'mindfulness' sounds simultaneously like a corporate-speak buzzword and a type of new-age mysticism. Before diving in, it makes sense to have an agreed upon definition. Jon Kabat-Zinn (2013), arguably the foremost practitioner-experts, defines mindfulness as "...the awareness that arises from paying attention in a particular way; on purpose, in the present moment and non-judgmentally."
He offers a full explanation in this video:
