An Investigation of Stress, Mindfulness, and Self-Efficacy Among English Language Learners at Universities in Uzbekistan

Dr. Azizbek Mukhamedov, Department of Theory and Practice of English, Jizzakh State Pedagogical University, azizbekmuxamedovuzb@gmail.com Mindfulness has been shown to impact an individual’s physical and psychological well-being; however, research regarding mindfulness, stress, and learning is limited. This study investigated the relationship between mindfulness, self-efficacy, and stress in English language learners in the Central Asian country of Uzbekistan. A total of 372 Uzbek university students completed an online questionnaire assessing mindful awareness, perceived stress, and their self-efficacy in learning English. Mindfulness was negatively correlated with perceived stress (rs=-.394, p<.01), compared to a positive relationship between mindfulness and self-efficacy (rs =.109, p<.05). No relationship was found between self-efficacy and stress. Women showed higher self-efficacy compared to men (p=.003). Interestingly, Russian speakers reported the least mindfulness (p<.001) and the most stress (p=.019). The average perceived stress score for Uzbek students was higher than previously established norms for American students. Results suggest Uzbek students have high levels of perceived stress and may benefit from stress reduction techniques. More research into mindfulness and other stress reducing interventions among Uzbek university students is needed. An Investigation of Stress, Mindfulness, and Self-Efficacy among English Language Learners at Universities in Uzbekistan In February of 2014, the cover of Time featured a photo of a woman meditating with the title “The Mindful Revolution.” In the issue, journalist, Kate Pickard (2014) wrote about how to find peace in a stressed-out world through mindfulness. This Time cover story is just one example of the rise in discussion of and popularity of mindfulness in the West over the past few decades. According to a 2018 report released by the Centers for Disease Control, the use of meditation among adults increased threefold between 2012 and 2017 (Clarke et al., 2018), which corresponds to an increase in research related to mindfulness. Between 1966 and 2020 there were over 16,000 studies published related to mindfulness, with the number of publications increasing by an average of 23.5% per year from 2010 to 2020 (Baminiwatta & Solangaarachchi, 2021). Despite exponential growth in the number of publications related to mindfulness in the past twenty years, studies in education have remained flat at only approximately 5% of the total studies published (Baminiwatta & Solangaarachchi, 2021). Additionally, the majority of this research has taken place in Western countries. Few published studies related to mindfulness or stress have been conducted in Central Asia. Mindfulness is an ancient contemplative practice that dates back approximately 3,000 years to early yogic and Hindu writings such as the Patanjali’s Yoga-sutras and the Bhagavadgita. Both texts describe mental practices to achieve higher levels of consciousness and enlightenment through the control of one’s thoughts (Bhagavadgita, 1994; Patanjali Yoga Sutras, 2014). One of the first scientific studies to investigate the effect of mindfulness on subjects’ physical well-being was conducted in 1982 by Kabat-Zinn, one of the foremost names in the field. Kabat-Zinn developed an intensive 10-week mindfulness training program for 51 patients experiencing chronic pain that had not responded to any previous treatments. His results showed dramatic improvements in the level of pain the patients experienced and showed significantly fewer symptoms of psychological distress. Since that seminal study was published, thousands of studies have shown the positive physical and psychological effects of mindfulness training (Baminiwatta & Solangaarachchi, 2021).