Mindfulness and Subjective Well-Being among Undergraduate Students in Balasore District of Odisha: A Correlational Study

Abstract

Sustaining the mental health and well-being of students is the utmost priority in the 21^st Century, while Mindfulness has been proven to be a crucial factor to enhance the mental health of individuals with psychological disorders.  Still, there is a lack of Indian-specific studies that examined the association between mindfulness and the subjective well-being of students. The present study examined the relationship between mindfulness and the subjective well-being of the undergraduate students of the Balasore district of Odisha. 180 samples were selected randomly from the different degree colleges of Balasore district. A self-developed tool was used to assess the students' subjective well-being, and the Five-Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire was used to examine students’ mindfulness. The study revealed that the undergraduate students of Balasore district exhibited an average level of mindfulness and subjective well-being, representing a moderate state of present moment awareness and life satisfaction among undergraduate students. It was also found that gender does not affect these psychological constructs, as no significant difference was found in mindfulness and subjective well-being among undergraduate students in terms of their gender. The study further revealed that there is a moderate to high level of positive correlation between mindfulness and subjective well-being, with a coefficient of correlation value of +0.63, indicating that a higher level of mindfulness is associated with a higher level of well-being among undergraduate students. The study suggests that integrating mindfulness into the curriculum may help in developing students' well-being and ensure better mental health.