“Why Are You Meditating? You Can Just Pray”: A Focus Group Study With Hispanic/Latina Speech-Language Pathology Graduate Students

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this exploratory study was to investigate the perceptions of mindfulness held by a small sample of graduate Hispanic/Latina speech-language pathology (SLP) students. Method: Seven second-year graduate SLP students who identified as Hispanic/Latina were included in this study. Participants completed a survey and participated in a 60-min focus group session. Survey data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, while focus group data underwent thematic analysis. Results: Thematic analysis of the focus group data gave rise to three major themes: “perceptions of mindfulness,” “cultural parallels,” and “familial considerations,” which was composed of two subthemes: “openness about practice” and “tools to facilitate family understanding.” Conclusion: Participants in this study discussed the benefits of mindfulness and their willingness to practice; however, stigmatizing beliefs and lack of education about mindfulness within their cultural communities need to be addressed.