Buddhist Psychology Innovation to Uplift the Mental Well-being of Community Workers (VHVs)

Abstract

          The purpose of this research is: 1. to study the emotional elevation of community workers (village health volunteers, VHVs), 2. to develop a training program based on Buddhist psychology innovations for the emotional elevation of community workers (VHVs), and 3. to present the results of developing Buddhist psychology innovations for the emotional elevation of community workers (VHVs). The research used a mixed-methods design, incorporating both quantitative and qualitative methods. The research tools included: 1) a training program with a content validity index ranging from 0.56 to 1.00, and 2) a measurement tool with a reliability of 0.95. The sample consisted of two groups: Group 1 comprised 400 community workers (VHVs) with more than 2 years of experience, and Group 2 consisted of 60 participants in the experimental group, determined through G Power analysis (effect size = 0.8, alpha = 0.05), with the control and experimental groups each consisting of 30 participants. Participants were selected through individual matching and simple random sampling. The experimental group received training through a Buddhist psychology innovation program, while the control group did not receive any training.

            The research results revealed that: 1. the VHVs showed an overall level of emotional elevation in the normal range, with high levels of mental strength and Buddhist spiritual development; 2. the training program was developed by integrating concepts such as mental strength, spiritual intelligence from a Buddhist perspective, mindfulness, loving-kindness meditation, Yoniso manasikara (wise attention), and experiential learning. The program consisted of four steps: problem recognition, reflective thinking, creating new knowledge, and practical application; 3. the experimental group showed significantly higher emotional elevation post-test and follow-up compared to pre-test, at the 0.05 level; and 4. focus group discussions revealed that the experimental group was satisfied with the training program as it helped them gain better self-awareness and understanding of others, providing guidance on working effectively within the community to achieve emotional elevation.