Chapter 1: Compassion and Transformational Pedagogy: A Reflexive Approach

This chapter aims to learn from and inquire into methods of positive wellbeing with a specific contemplation on the experiential underpinnings of spirituality in connection with the self. This chapter discusses the pertinence of caring for oneself despite established institutional demands and societal pressure in our ever-changing world.

This chapter concerns a theoretical and empirical inquiry into modes of educational practice, which might be defined in terms of their use of compassion to transform the self and others. The research question which guides the work throughout this chapter is: can self-care or spirituality be a contagion for social change?

The study here is concerned with nonformal educators in Scotland and their experiences of engaging in forms of self-care. In addition, practitioners who participated in this study are involved in the work of community development, youth work, social justice, and recovery from addictions with a specific lens on the Scottish context.