At Naropa University
Cognitive and Affective Science Laboratory
“The really important kind of freedom involves attention, and awareness, and discipline, and effort, and being able truly to care about other people”
— David Foster Wallace
This quote, from David's famous essay, This is Water, summarizes insights from his inquiry about connections between how people pay attention, how they experience themselves, and how they treat others. In the Cognitive and Affective Science Lab (CASL) at Naropa University, we inquire about these connections through research on meditation, emotion regulation, and social life.
Vision
To help advance the science and practice of mental, emotional, and social well-being.
Mission
The Cognitive and Affective Science Lab (CASL) uses 1st-, 2nd-, and 3rd-person approaches to help advance scientific understanding of mental, emotional, and social well-being. Relying on a range of methods, from neuroscientific measures to smartphone-based surveys, CASL research focuses on questions at the intersections of mind and brain; meditation and action; and self and other. Through engaging a contemplative approach to the research process, CASL provides training opportunities for students, community members, and a next generation of contemplative scientists.
Values
Our values, which together form the acronym CORE, reflect central elements of our contemplative research approach to fulfilling our vision and mission. Although the words that comprise CORE are familiar, each description intentionally extends the word's familiar meaning to better fit our contemplative research approach.
Co-creative: When we allow ourselves to be informed and inspired by diverse perspectives, what we create has more value.
Open-minded: When we meet new ideas and experience with a mind open to change, we can go beyond what we think.
Rigorous: The opportunity to train our minds is present when we lean into the next moment with awareness.
Energizing: Working toward something bigger than ourselves can spark our vitality rather than burn us out.