#12 Bernadette Flanagan | Why Spirituality and Contemplative Studies Matter for Today's Professionals
Our guest in this episode is Bernadette Flanagan, an internationally recognized researcher in the fields of spirituality, contemplative studies, and professional education. Bernadette was Director of Research at All Hallows College, Dublin City University, and is now Director of the Spirituality in Society and the Professions research group at South-East Technological University in Ireland. She is the co-editor of the Routledge International Handbook of Spirituality in Society and the Professions as well as the Routledge Handbook of Research Methods in Spirituality and Contemplative Studies. In this episode, Bernadette shares insights into how spirituality and contemplative practices can foster reflection, resilience, and ethical responsibility among professionals working in fields like education, healthcare, and social care. She explains how contemplative and cooperative inquiry methods open new ways of doing research that connect personal development, professional practice, and social transformation. We also discuss how first-, second-, and third-person research approaches can deepen academic work in spirituality, and how spiritual and contemplative practices can serve as crucial resources for navigating today's global "polycrisis". Finally, Bernadette reflects on how her long career of supervising spirituality research has shaped her own understanding of life, learning, and responsibility.
00:08:17 – What can spirituality and contemplation add to more mainstream, competence-oriented approaches in professional studies?
00:09:46 – Do cooperative inquiry, contemplative inquiry and action research, do they share a common methodological orientation?
00:15:35 - Lies the true potential of spiritual and contemplative practices in second-person research and not in third-person research?
00:18:34 – Was there a personal transformation due to all that research work in the field or spirituality and contemplative studies?
00:29:15 – How can spirituality and contemplation foster the responsibility of students of professional studies?
Between Theory and Practice – Questions for Reflection
Between Theory and Practice – Questions for Reflection
How might the insights from this dialogue inspire your own practice? The following questions are intended to inspire further inquiry, whether explored individually or in conversation with colleagues, students, or peers.
- Bernadette Flanagan suggests that responsible action in a complex world requires not only outer expertise but also inner development. What practices, habits, or spaces for reflection help you cultivate the awareness, resilience, and attentiveness needed to respond wisely to the challenges you encounter in your professional life?
- Throughout the conversation, Flanagan highlights the importance of remaining open to the unknown and learning from perspectives beyond our own. When was the last time a dialogue, encounter, or experience changed the way you see your work or the world? How might you create more opportunities for this kind of transformative learning in your professional practice?
Literature:
- Flanagan, B. & Clough, K. (eds.) (2025): The Routledge Handbook of Research Methods for Spirituality and Contemplative Studies. Abingdon on Thames: Routledge.
- Laszlo, Z. & Flanagan, B. (eds.) (2019): Routledge International Handbook of Spirituality in Society and the Professions. Abingdon on Thames: Routledge.
