Employee One-Minute Mindful Breathing Microbreaks for Present-Moment Attention, Recovery, and Well-Being

Abstract

Stress remains a concern for individuals and organizations as it negatively affects employee well-being and productivity. The goal of this qualitative case study was to explore how employees experience the influence of one-minute mindful breathing microbreaks on their attention to the present-moment experiences, recovery from work demands and other stressors, and well-being. Contemplative cognition framework, effort-recovery model, and well-being theory guided the three research questions to understand employees’ experiences of present-moment attention, recovery, and well-being during and after taking the microbreaks for one week. Sixty employees in the United States were recruited through a Facebook event page. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the responses to the closed-ended questions in 48 questionnaires and 1,371 daily diaries. Thematic analysis was used to analyze 12 one-on-one semi-structured interviews and the optional open-ended qualitative responses among the questionnaires and daily diaries. From the thematic analysis four themes emerged: a) present-moment attention; b) recovery from work demands and other stressors; c) overall well-being; and d) microbreaks feasibility. The codes related to the first three themes revealed participants experienced heightened present-moment attention, felt noticeable recovery from work stress, and experienced greater well-being after taking the microbreaks. The fourth theme demonstrated that employees were able to feasibly incorporate the microbreaks into their lives at home and work. Quantitative findings supported the qualitative data. This study not only advanced scientific knowledge by testing a framework, a model, and a theory in a new setting, but it offered a practical mindfulness tool to decrease stress and increase employee well-being.