Hear from the Experts
Learn about the transformative power of mindfulness in social work through our exclusive video interviews with four leading researchers. These experts share valuable insights on how they effectively integrated mindfulness practices to enhance the well-being and effectiveness of social work students.
Dr. Gail Kinman is a Chartered Psychologist and Professor at Birkbeck University of London, specializing in the wellbeing of professionals in emotionally demanding work. Her research extensively focuses on mindfulness as a critical self-care tool for social workers, exploring how mindfulness techniques can enhance resilience, improve mental health, and develop key professional skills, such as listening and empathy.
Dr. Annemarie Gockel, MSW, PhD, is an Associate Professor at Smith College, specializing in the integration of mindfulness into social work education. Her research focuses on how mindfulness practices can enhance the training of social work students, promoting self-care and critical reflection in their professional development. Through her work, Gockel aims to improve the effectiveness and relevance of social work pedagogy by incorporating mindfulness techniques into direct practice instruction.
Dr. Alicia Hawley-Bernardez, LMSW, PhD, is an Assistant Professor at Our Lady of the Lake University, specializing in mindfulness in social work education, intimate partner violence, and gun violence prevention. Her research focuses on incorporating mindfulness practices into social work education to enhance students' self-care and stress management skills. Dr. Hawley-Bernardez has conducted studies examining the effects of adapted mindfulness-based stress reduction courses on social work students, particularly during challenging times such as the COVID-19 pandemic.
Dr. Melinda McCormick, LMSW, PhD, is an Assistant Professor at Western Michigan University, known for her research on integrating mindfulness into social work education and practice. In collaboration with Dr. Yvonne Unrau, she co-authored a significant paper titled "The Environment-Within-Person Perspective: Integrating a Mindfulness Framework into Social Work Practice." This work introduces the concept of the "environment-within-person" perspective, which emphasizes the importance of incorporating mindfulness techniques into social work practice to enhance practitioners' self-awareness and effectiveness