Mindfulness for the Next Generation Helping Emerging Adults Manage Stress and Lead Healthier Lives

College students and other young adults today experience high levels of stress as they pursue personal, educational, and career goals. These struggles can have serious consequences, and may increase the risk of psychological distress and mental illness among the age group now commonly referred to as "emerging adults." Scientific research has shown that practicing mindfulness can help manage stress and enhance quality of life, but traditional methods of teaching mindfulness and meditation may not be effective for college-age adults.

This fully updated second edition of Mindfulness for the Next Generation describes an evidence-based approach for teaching the useful and important skill of mindfulness to emerging adults. The manualized, four-session program outlined here, Koru Mindfulness, is designed to help young adults navigate challenging tasks, and achieve meaningful personal growth. Rogers and Maytan, psychiatrists and developers of Koru Mindfulness, also discuss the unique stressors emerging adults face, identify effective teaching techniques for working with them, and review the now-robust research supporting mindfulness for stress reduction in a scientifically rigorous yet reader-friendly way. Among the features new to this edition are new data on the effectiveness of the curriculum, an introduction to the Koru mindfulness teacher certification program, and adaptations for culturally informed practice, reflecting the international appeal of Koru Mindfulness as well as its growing use outside of college settings, and extensively revised in-session scripts. Mindfulness for the Next Generation is written for therapists, teachers, health professionals, and student service providers.

Holly Rogers, MD, is a psychiatrist who worked for 23 years at Duke University's Counseling and Psychological Services, the clinic that serves the Duke student population. She is a co-developer of Koru Mindfulness and a co-founder of The Center for Koru Mindfulness.

Margaret Maytan, MD, MA, is a psychiatrist recently retired from Duke University Medical Center. She is currently working part-time in community mental health. Dr. Maytan is a longtime practitioner of mindfulness meditation and has extensive training in mind-body skills.

Part I: Teaching Mindfulness to College Students and Other Emerging Adults

Chapter 1. Koru: A New Model

Chapter 2. More about Emerging Adults and Mindfulness

Chapter 3. Strategies for Bringing Mindfulness to Emerging Adults

Chapter 4. The Research Behind Our Teaching

Part II: Creating a Mindfulness Course

Chapter 5. Structure and Logistics

Chapter 6. The First Class

Chapter 7. The Second Class

Chapter 8. The Third Class

Chapter 9. The Fourth Class

Part III: Conclusion

Chapter 10. Koru: New Developments

Chapter 11. Transformation