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Mindfulness (A Merloyd Lawrence Book) [Paperback]

Ellen J. Langer
3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (34 customer reviews)

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Book Description

January 22, 1990 A Merloyd Lawrence Book
Ellen J. Langer, Harvard professor of psychology, determines that the mindless following of routine and other automatic behaviors lead to much error, pain and a predetermined course of life. In this thought-provoking book, her research has been "translated" for the lay reader. With anecdotes and metaphors, Langer explains how the mindless--as opposed to the mindful--develop mindsets of categories, associations, habits of thought born of repetition in childhood and throughout schooling. To be mindful, she notes, stressing process over outcome, allows free rein to intuition and creativity, and opens us to new information and perspectives.

Langer discusses the negative impact of mindsets on business and social relations, showing special concern for the elderly, who often suffer from learned helplessness and lack of options. Encouraging the application of mindfulness to health, the author affirms that placebos and alternative, mind-based therapies can help patients and addicts move from unhealthy to healthy contexts.

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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The mindless following of routine and other automatic behaviors lead to much error, pain and a predetermined course of life, contends Langer, Harvard professor of psychology, in this thought-provoking study in which she "translates" for lay readers the findings of her research, much of it among the elderly. With anecdotes and metaphors, she explains how the mindless--as opposed to the mindful--develop mindsets of categories, associations, habits of thought born of repetition in childhood and throughout schooling. To be mindful, she notes, stressing process over outcome, allows free rein to intuition and creativity, and opens us to new information and perspectives. Langer discusses the negative impact of mindsets on business and social relations, showing special concern for the elderly, who often suffer from learned helplessness and lack of options. Encouraging the application of mindfulness to health, the author affirms that placebos and alternative, mind-based therapies can help patients and addicts move from unhealthy to healthy contexts. First serial to Health magazine; QPBC, Library of Science, Behavioral Science, Natural Science and Psychotherapy and Social Science Book Clubs selections.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Ellen J. Langer, Ph.D., professor of psychology at Harvard University, is the author of Personal Politics (with Carol Dweck), The Psychology of Control, and Mindfulness, which has been published in ten countries. She is also coeditor of Higher Stages of Development and Beliefs, Attitudes and Decision Making. She is the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship and numerous awards including the Award for Distinguished Contributions to Psychology in the Public Interest of the American Psychological Association.

Product Details

  • Paperback: 256 pages
  • Publisher: Da Capo Press; Reprint edition (January 22, 1990)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0201523418
  • ISBN-13: 978-0201523416
  • Product Dimensions: 5.4 x 0.7 x 8.3 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 9.9 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (34 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #12,103 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

3.9 out of 5 stars
(34)
3.9 out of 5 stars
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
136 of 139 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars This book can change your life! September 13, 1999
Format:Paperback
I purchased this wonderful book back in the 80's! I had quite a few bad habits, and really wanted to change not only my life but my attitude.Mindfulness not only enabled me to quit smoking without suffering any withdrawals, but woke me up from the sleep ofcomplacency. I began to look at the world differently. I learned to let go of destructive ideas.I learned how to slow down, and to be grateful for the moment.Over the years I have given this book to anyone seeking advice. Miss Langer writes in an easy to understand style as if she is your best friend who has just discovered some amazing insights that she is going to share with just you.I have not re-read this little gem in years, but can still remember certain paragraphs and sentences that were so true then as they are now. I recommend this book to anyone who is looking to put the zest & joy of living back in their life.Even those that are truly happy will find this book riveting & a fun read.
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124 of 140 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Read this book several times. January 10, 2000
Format:Paperback
This book is still selling well after ten years because Langer is a first-rate researcher who can write. And not only that, the subject she chose to study is extremely valuable and important.

The book is basically about mindLESSness: What causes it, what we can do about it, and what difference it makes. If you would like to be more creative in your work, if you would like to be more alive and awake, if you would like to stay mentally young for your entire life, read this book. I'm the author of the book, Self-Help Stuff That Works, and I'm an expert on what is effective and what is not. Ellen Langer's work is effective and extremely important, both for you personally and for society at large. I highly recommend this book.

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39 of 42 people found the following review helpful
By JG
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
You don't have to sit in meditation or try various techniques of

mindfulness to acheive mindfulness....mindfulness is always there, if you see it...her book is an amazing book that needs to be reread and is truly a psychological study whose premise needs to be advertised to those who are afraid of adopting mind sets which can make them happier human beings.

The implications can have far reaching benefits in all spheres of life..awareness of the obvious is the key to mental health.

The clarity of perception is always present if we eliminate the conditioned hindering filters that hamper one's creative energy.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars Pay Attention
This book made me pay more attention to my own attitudes and approaches to life. Ellen Langer has presented an important prospective to life and especially to aging.
Published 1 month ago by patrick farish
4.0 out of 5 stars It's a good read
I've enjoyed reading this book, the author, is very entertaining even though she's writing about an important topic. I couldn't beat the price either
Published 3 months ago by Linda McIntosh
5.0 out of 5 stars Automatic or Deliberate
WoW. Our mindfulness has been programmed out of us. As children, instead of uuuu-ing and aaaah-ing about the colors of our crayons and our natural, exuberant desire to expore, we... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Karenbeth Glunz
5.0 out of 5 stars Much more Abstract and detailed than other methods of mindfulness
I have ADHD and manic episodes and I go from Abstract to simplification and breaking down and tailoring it to MY NEEDS. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Mat
3.0 out of 5 stars A little too detailed
Good subject. good presentation...however it told me more than I wanted to know as to how the author and her students set up experiments and arrived at their conclusions. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Raymond L. Mayo
5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome Mind Expanding
Not only does this book read easily, but the concepts will change your perception of effects of aging. Read more
Published 4 months ago by R. Lovell
2.0 out of 5 stars Outdated, limited and a naive view of society
If you must read this book, go ahead. Here is what it tells you. You can live your life mindlessly or mindfully. Here are examples of mindlessness. Read more
Published 8 months ago by JackOfMostTrades
5.0 out of 5 stars Deeply inspiring book
The book touches on some great concepts and uses research data to make key points. The example of confrontation between Napoloean and Kutuzov to illustrate how changing... Read more
Published 18 months ago by SsS
4.0 out of 5 stars Superb
This is a superbly crafted work detailing the research conducted by Ellen Langer and her colleagues over the past fifteen years, at Yale, City University of New York, and, for the... Read more
Published on August 29, 2010 by William Dahl
4.0 out of 5 stars Mindfulness
I really like this book in presenting in class the opposite of "mindfulness"....."mindlessness". This is not a particularly great book, but it holds much for those who are... Read more
Published on July 10, 2010 by Larry Earl Holland
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