Mundane Moments in University Student Wellbeing

Keywords: Wellbeing; mundanity; cross-cultural; students; day in the life

The article explores how university students in Hong Kong and Australia conceptualize wellbeing as part of their everyday lives, through the sharing of “Day in the Life” video diaries. The videos highlight mundane, ordinary moments that support students’ wellbeing, such as daily commutes, meal preparation, time in nature, and crafting. By analyzing these “mundane data”, the authors find that wellbeing emerges through routines, improvisations, contingencies, and accomplishments in students’ daily lives. The virtual exchange enables students to appreciate wellbeing as multidimensional, involving physical, social, and psychological nourishment. Students demonstrate agency in cultivating their own wellbeing through mundane practices. The article suggests implications for universities to be “response-able” in supporting these mundane wellbeing practices through policy, curriculum, calendars, and digital platforms. Overall, the research re-imagines wellbeing through the lens of mundanity, highlighting students’ capacity for everyday wellbeing cultivation.

Publication:

Heinrichs, D.H, Hameed, S.A., Tsao, J., McLay, K., Huong, N., Alhadad, S. (2022) Mundane matters: Entangling moments of student well-being across cultures, time, space, and virtual world, Critical Studies in Education. https://doi.org/10.1080/17508487.2023.2252469