DOCSLIB.ORG

Pursuing the Good Life: an Examination of Purpose, Meaningful Engagement, and Psychological Well-Being in Emerging Adulthood

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Pursuing the Good Life: an Examination of Purpose, Meaningful Engagement, and Psychological Well-Being in Emerging Adulthood PURSUING THE GOOD LIFE: AN EXAMINATION OF PURPOSE, MEANINGFUL ENGAGEMENT, AND PSYCHOLOGICAL WELL-BEING IN EMERGING ADULTHOOD A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE SCHOOL OF EDUCATION AND THE COMMITTEE ON GRADUATE STUDIES OF STANFORD UNIVERSITY IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Matthew Joseph Bundick December 2009 © 2010 by Matthew Joseph Bundick. All Rights Reserved. Re-distributed by Stanford University under license with the author. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution- Noncommercial 3.0 United States License. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/us/ This dissertation is online at: http://purl.stanford.edu/cb008zb6473 ii I certify that I have read this dissertation and that, in my opinion, it is fully adequate in scope and quality as a dissertation for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. William Damon, Primary Adviser I certify that I have read this dissertation and that, in my opinion, it is fully adequate in scope and quality as a dissertation for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Richard Shavelson, Co-Adviser I certify that I have read this dissertation and that, in my opinion, it is fully adequate in scope and quality as a dissertation for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. John Krumboltz I certify that I have read this dissertation and that, in my opinion, it is fully adequate in scope and quality as a dissertation for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Shirley Feldman Approved for the Stanford University Committee on Graduate Studies. Patricia J. Gumport, Vice Provost Graduate Education This signature page was generated electronically upon submission of this dissertation in electronic format. An original signed hard copy of the signature page is on file in University Archives. iii ABSTRACT Emerging adulthood represents a critical phase for the development of purpose in life, yet little is known about the process through which young people become purposeful, or what the lasting benefits of such purposefulness might be. The present investigation had two overarching goals: 1) to advance the notion of meaningful engagement as important toward purpose development, and 2) to test multiple components of a process model through which meaningful engagement and purpose lead to psychological well-being. Specifically, four hypotheses were put to the test though three interconnected studies. The first hypothesis, addressed in Study 1 using cross-sectional data, posited that purpose and meaningful engagement would be associated with psychological well-being. The second hypothesis proposed a mediational model, wherein the relationship between meaningful engagement and psychological well-being would be mediated by purpose; this hypothesis was tested first with cross-sectional data in Study 1 and again using longitudinal data in Study 2. Third, a moderation hypothesis was tested on the temporal relationship between purpose and psychological well-being, specifically that the relationship would be stronger for those high in self-transcendent life goals. Finally, Study 3 tested an intervention hypothesis to see whether engaging in deep reflection on and discussion about one’s life goals can increase both purpose and, consequently, psychological well-being. The results showed partial confirmation of the hypotheses. The cross-sectional analyses showed strong relations among meaningful engagement, purpose, and psychological well-being, and provided support for the proposed mediational model. iv However, the longitudinal analyses did not show significant relations among the constructs. The moderation hypothesis did provide evidence that the path from purpose to well-being was stronger for those high on self-transcendent life goals, suggesting psychological benefits of pursuing purposes beyond oneself (but not self-oriented life goals). Finally, there was a significant positive effect of engaging in deep discussion and reflection on one’s life goals, toward both increased purpose and increased psychological well-being. Implications of these findings for higher education in particular are discussed, and directions for future research are presented. v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS For the many gifts of knowledge, guidance, and support that have been bestowed upon me along this long and winding road—by friends, family, mentors and colleagues alike—I can only begin here to express my deepest gratitude. First, I would like to acknowledge my professional indebtedness to the present and past scholars in the Stanford Center on Adolescence with whom I have worked on the Youth Purpose Project, most importantly my advisor, Bill Damon, on whose incredibly broad intellectual shoulders I have attempted to stand (and to whom I will be forever grateful for the opportunity). I will refrain from individually naming the rest of my colleagues on this project who have not only influenced me and my thinking, but who also laid the theoretical and empirical groundwork upon which my present framework and studies were founded. Though my current work does not completely reflect the theory advanced and research questions taken on by the Youth Purpose Project, much of my thinking and the majority of my data originated in this project, and I am tremendously appreciative for the experience and the access. My further professional thanks go out to Rich Shavelson, Shirley Feldman, and John Krumboltz, for their investments in me through the dissertation process (and throughout my graduate career) as members of my various committees including reading and oral committees, as well as Sheri Sheppard for her willingness to fill the role of my committee University Chair. In particular, Shirley has served as a wonderful academic in- house counsel since the beginning, and Rich has provided me not only invaluable advice but opportunities to broaden my scholarly horizons in ways that will no doubt serve me vi well long into my professional future. Additionally, I would like to thank the John Templeton Foundation and the Thrive Foundation for Youth for their support of the Youth Purpose Project and the present research, in particular the Thrive crew for the amazing relationships I have built with them and their close-knit affiliates. For all the friends and family who have supported me along the way, I cannot offer enough thanks. My life has been enriched more than I could have imagined by the friendships I have built during my time in graduate school, in ways that will no doubt last long into the future. My parents, Joe and Paulette, are and will always be the rocks upon which my life and whatever successes it might bring have been built. And finally, to my wife, Jackie, I owe absolutely everything. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS vi LIST OF TABLES xii LIST OF FIGURES xiv CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1 Introduction 1 Definition and Measurement Issues 4 Definitional Issues 5 Purpose 5 Meaningful engagement 12 Psychological well-being 17 Measurement Issues 21 Purpose 21 Meaningful engagement 24 Psychological well-being 25 Review of the Empirical Literature 30 Purpose and its Relations with Well-Being and Engagement 31 Meaningful Engagement and its Relations with Purpose and Well-Being 38 Summary 41 CHAPTER 2: CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK 43 Definitions of the Constructs 43 Purpose 43 Meaningful Engagement 48 viii Psychological Well-Being 49 Conceptual Model 51 Research Questions and Hypotheses 58 CHAPTER 3: EMPIRICAL APPROACH AND MEASUREMENT ISSUES 62 Overview 62 Measurement Issues 63 Method 64 Participants and Procedure 64 Missing Data 66 Measures 68 Meaningful Engagement 68 Purpose and Psychological Well-Being 77 Purpose 79 Psychological well-being 82 Measurement Model 84 CHAPTER 4: STUDY 1 – A CROSS-SECTIONAL TEST OF THE MEDIATIONAL MODEL 96 Overview and Predictions for Study 1 96 Method 96 Participants and Procedure 96 Measures 97 Analytic Procedures 97 Results 97 Relations among Purpose, Meaningful Engagement, and Psychological Well-Being 98 Testing the Mediational Model 99 Study 1 Discussion 101 ix CHAPTER 5: STUDY 2 – LONGITUDINAL RELATIONS AMONG MEANINGFUL ENGAGEMENT, PURPOSE, AND PSYCHOLOGICAL WELL-BEING 106 Overview and Predictions for Study 2 106 Overview of Data and Measurement Approach 111 Method 112 Participants and Procedure 112 Attrition 113 Measures 114 Mediation Measurement Model 119 Measurement Invariance 124 Results 127 Mean Differences 127 Testing the Longitudinal Mediational Model 129 Testing the Longitudinal Moderation Hypothesis 132 BTS-orientation of life goals as moderator 133 Self-orientation of life goals as moderator 137 Study 2 Discussion 139 CHAPTER 6: STUDY 3 – EXPLORATION OF A ―PURPOSE INTERVENTION‖ 143 Overview and Predictions for Study 3 143 The Purpose Interview 146 Purpose Interview as Purpose Intervention 147 Method 151 Participants and Procedure 151 Attrition 153 Measures 154 Analytic Plan 156 Study 3 Results and Discussion 158 Purpose 158 x Psychological Well-Being 162 CHAPTER 7: GENERAL DISCUSSION 166 Summary of Conceptual Framework 166 Summary of the Main Findings 168 Implications 174 Limitations 176 Future Directions 178 APPENDICES 181 Appendix A. Relevant Youth Purpose Project Survey Materials and Sample Page from Online Survey 181 Appendix B. Results of Exploratory Factor Analyses from Chapter Three 187 Appendix C. Youth Purpose Project Interview protocol 195 REFERENCES 197 xi LIST OF TABLES Page Table 1 Exploratory Factor Analysis of Meaningful Engagement Items with Oblique Rotation 71 Table 2 Descriptive Statistics for Meaningful Engagement Activity Domain Subscales
Load more

Recommended publications
  • What's It All For? the Role of Purpose, Mattering, & Coherence in Cultivating a Meaningful Life
    What’s It All For? The Role of Purpose, Mattering, & Coherence in Cultivating a Meaningful Life Heidi A. Zetzer, Ph.D., Director Carol Ackerman Positive Psychology Clinic Hosford Counseling & Psychological Services Clinic Carol Ackerman Positive Psychology Clinic Hosford Counseling & Psychological Services Clinic Positive psychology uses your strengths to overcome roadblocks and engage in a more joyful, courageous, meaningful life. The Carol Ackerman Positive Psychology Clinic conducts research on the benefits of psychotherapy and the role that positive emotion plays in fostering mental, emotional, and behavioral health and wellness for children and adults. Positive Psychology/Hosford Clinic 2 2/20/2019 • You can have MIL without knowing the meaning of life, the universe, and everything. :) Meaning in Life MIL refers to people’s perceptions that their lives matter, that they make sense, and that they unfold in accordance with some over-arching purpose. (Steger & Dik, 2009, p. 133) Positive Psychology/Hosford Clinic 3 2/20/2019 Participants will learn about: * The importance of meaning in life * Sources of meaning * How to increase a "felt sense" of meaning in life Positive Psychology/Hosford Clinic 4 2/20/2019 Artist Positive Psychology/Hosford Clinic 5 2/20/2019 Artist’s Home Dec, 2018 Positive Psychology/Hosford Clinic 6 2/20/2019 Artist’s Home December, 2019 Positive Psychology/Hosford Clinic 7 2/20/2019 What if you got a “second chance”? “ I should have died. What am I going to do now?” • Salience of MIL varies • Developmental Events
    [Show full text]
  • Your Search for a Meaningful Life 2
    Your Search For A Meaningful Life http://www.logotherapylearningcenter.com 2 YOUR SEARCH FOR A MEANINGFUL LIFE BOOK ONE Opening Avenues Of Fulfillment By Resolving Challenges Of Love, Labor And Leadership With Frankle/DeVille Logotherapy LOGOTHERAPY FOR FULFILLMENT ® LOGOTHERAPY (Spirit Wellness) = f (Personal Meaning x Communal Belonging) Logotherapy is the synthesis of existential psychology and metaphysical philosophy that offers pleasurable, powerful and permanent benefits in order to create and sustain a satisfying life during good times and bad. www.logotherapylearningcenter.com All Rights Reserved @ DeVille Logotherapy Learning Center 2010 Your Search For A Meaningful Life http://www.logotherapylearningcenter.com 3 CONTENT BOOK ONE PSYCHOSPIRITUAL GROWTH For The Reader, ABOUT MEANING AND BELONGING ------------------ 4 Part One – CONSTANT CHANGE CHAPTER ONE - FRANKL AND FRUSTRATION--------------------------------------- 28 CHAPTER TWO - CHANGE AND COMPLEXITY---------------------------------------- 51 CHAPTER THREE - LIFE AND CHANGE ------------------------------------------------ 69 Part Two – PERSONAL MATURING CHAPTER FOUR - THE MEANING OF MEANING-------------------------------------- 78 CHAPTER FIVE - ELEMENTS OF SATISFACTION------------------------------------ 94 CHAPTER SIX - BEYOND FEAR AND ANXIETY--------------------------------------- 105 Part Three – LOGOTHERAPY METHODS CHAPTER SEVEN - A PRINCIPLE OF SOUND RELATIONSHIPS----------------- 125 CHAPTER EIGHT - THE PRINCIPLE OF RECIPROCITY ---------------------------- 130 CHAPTER
    [Show full text]
  • The Three Meanings of Meaning in Life: Distinguishing Coherence, Purpose, and Significance
    The Journal of Positive Psychology Dedicated to furthering research and promoting good practice ISSN: 1743-9760 (Print) 1743-9779 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/rpos20 The three meanings of meaning in life: Distinguishing coherence, purpose, and significance Frank Martela & Michael F. Steger To cite this article: Frank Martela & Michael F. Steger (2016) The three meanings of meaning in life: Distinguishing coherence, purpose, and significance, The Journal of Positive Psychology, 11:5, 531-545, DOI: 10.1080/17439760.2015.1137623 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2015.1137623 Published online: 27 Jan 2016. Submit your article to this journal Article views: 425 View related articles View Crossmark data Full Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at http://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?journalCode=rpos20 Download by: [Colorado State University] Date: 06 July 2016, At: 11:55 The Journal of Positive Psychology, 2016 Vol. 11, No. 5, 531–545, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2015.1137623 The three meanings of meaning in life: Distinguishing coherence, purpose, and significance Frank Martelaa* and Michael F. Stegerb,c aFaculty of Theology, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 4, Helsinki 00014, Finland; bDepartment of Psychology, Colorado State University, 1876 Campus Delivery, Fort Collins, CO 80523-1876, USA; cSchool of Behavioural Sciences, North-West University, Vanderbijlpark, South Africa (Received 25 June 2015; accepted 3 December 2015) Despite growing interest in meaning in life, many have voiced their concern over the conceptual refinement of the con- struct itself. Researchers seem to have two main ways to understand what meaning in life means: coherence and pur- pose, with a third way, significance, gaining increasing attention.
    [Show full text]
  • 1 from Viktor Frankl's Logotherapy to the Four Defining Characteristics of Self-Transcendence (ST) Paul T. P. Wong Introductio
    1 From Viktor Frankl’s Logotherapy to the Four Defining Characteristics of Self-Transcendence (ST) Paul T. P. Wong Introduction The present paper continues my earlier presentation on self-transcendence (ST) as a pathway to meaning, virtue, and happiness (Wong, 2016), in which I introduced Viktor Frankl’s (1985) two-factor theory of ST. Here, the same topic of ST is expanded by first providing the basic assumptions of logotherapy, then arguing the need for objective standards for meaning, and finally elaborating the defining characteristics of ST. To begin, here is a common-sense observation—no one can remain at the same spot for life for a variety of reasons, such as developmental and environmental changes, but most importantly because people dream of a better life and want to move to a preferred destination where they can find happiness and fulfillment. As a psychologist, I am interested in finding out (a) which destination people choose and (b) how they plan to get there successfully. In a free society that offers many opportunities for individuals, there are almost endless options regarding both (a) and (b). The reality is that not all purposes in life are equal. Some life goals are misguided, such as wanting to get rich by any means, including unethical and illegal ones, because ultimately, such choices could be self-defeating—these end values might not only fail to fill their hearts with happiness, but might also ruin their relationships and careers. The question, then, is: What kind of choices will have the greatest likelihood of resulting in a good life that not only benefits the individual but also society? My research has led me to hypothesize that the path of ST is most likely to result in such a good life.
    [Show full text]
  • Relationship Between One's Motive for Curiosity and Meaning in Life
    Eastern Illinois University The Keep Masters Theses Student Theses & Publications Fall 2020 Relationship between One’s Motive for Curiosity and Meaning in Life Charles Reither Eastern Illinois University Follow this and additional works at: https://thekeep.eiu.edu/theses Part of the Clinical Psychology Commons Recommended Citation Reither, Charles, "Relationship between One’s Motive for Curiosity and Meaning in Life" (2020). Masters Theses. 4845. https://thekeep.eiu.edu/theses/4845 This Dissertation/Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Student Theses & Publications at The Keep. It has been accepted for inclusion in Masters Theses by an authorized administrator of The Keep. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Running Head: CURIOSITY AND MEANING IN LIFE Relationship between One’s Motive for Curiosity and Meaning in Life Charles Reither Eastern Illinois University 2 Abstract Meaning in life as a psychological construct has many demonstrated benefits for psychological well-being and optimal functioning (Steger, 2013), and the treatment of clinical populations (Thir & Batthyány, 2016). This study investigated in greater detail than is currently available in the psychological literature how meaning in life is related to curiosity. Meaning in life was explored using top-down (the presence of and the search for meaning) and bottom-up (the specific sources of meaning) approaches. Curiosity was examined in its two motivation- based forms: curiosity motivated by the anticipation and enjoyment of discovery (an appetitive interest-type of curiosity) and curiosity motivated by a need to reduce uncertainty by filling in worrisome gaps in knowledge (a deprivation-type anxiety-reducing type of curiosity).
    [Show full text]
  • Baumeister-Et-Al
    The Journal of Positive Psychology, 2013 Vol. 8, No. 6, 505–516, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2013.830764 Some key differences between a happy life and a meaningful life Roy F. Baumeistera*, Kathleen D. Vohsb, Jennifer L. Aakerc and Emily N. Garbinskyc aDepartment of Psychology, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL 32306-4301, USA; bDepartment of Marketing, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA; cDepartment of Marketing, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA (Received 3 June 2012; accepted 24 July 2013) Being happy and finding life meaningful overlap, but there are important differences. A large survey revealed multiple differing predictors of happiness (controlling for meaning) and meaningfulness (controlling for happiness). Satisfying one’s needs and wants increased happiness but was largely irrelevant to meaningfulness. Happiness was largely present oriented, whereas meaningfulness involves integrating past, present, and future. For example, thinking about future and past was associated with high meaningfulness but low happiness. Happiness was linked to being a taker rather than a giver, whereas meaningfulness went with being a giver rather than a taker. Higher levels of worry, stress, and anxiety were linked to higher meaningfulness but lower happiness. Concerns with personal identity and expressing the self contributed to meaning but not happiness. We offer brief composite sketches of the unhappy but meaningful life and of the happy but meaningless life. Keywords: meaning; happiness; self; relationships; satisfaction with life The wishes for happiness and for a meaningful life are having one’s needs and desires satisfied, including being two of the most widely held goals by which people mea- largely free from unpleasant events.
    [Show full text]
  • Relationship Among Workplace Spirituality, Meaning in Life, and Psychological Well-Being of Teachers
    Universal Journal of Educational Research 5(6): 1008-1013, 2017 http://www.hrpub.org DOI: 10.13189/ujer.2017.050613 Relationship among Workplace Spirituality, Meaning in Life, and Psychological Well-being of Teachers Jin-long Liang1, Lan-xiang Peng2, Si-jie Zhao2, Ho-tang Wu3,* 1Department of Education, School of Education Sciences, Xinjiang Normal University, China 2College of Education, Shandong Normal University, China 3Department of Education, National Kaohsiung Normal University, Taiwan Copyright©2017 by authors, all rights reserved. Authors agree that this article remains permanently open access under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0 International License Abstract This study set out to analyze the relationship organizational commitment, intrinsic job satisfaction, the among teachers’ workplace spirituality, sense of meaning in intention or lack thereof to quit, job involvement, and life, and psychological well-being. Taking 610 teachers as its organization-based self-esteem (Milliman, Czaplewski, & subjects, the study employed three scales: one to measure the Ferguson, 2003) [5]. On the other hand, one’s sense of subjects’ sense of workplace spirituality, another to measure meaning in life has to do with the degree of significance one their sense of meaning in life, and a third to measure their feels his or her life, or being, or existence has (Steger, Frazier, sense of psychological well-being. These three scales were Oishi, & Kaler, 2006) [6]. Having a clear sense of one’s life’s pretested and found to have good reliability and validity. The meaning and purpose is of course regarded as a positive trait questionnaire data were analyzed using hierarchical and a psychological strength (Seligman & Csikszentinihalyi, regression in order to understand the explanatory power of 2000) [7], an indicator of well-being (Ryff, 1989) [8] that can the predictors(workplace spirituality and meaning in life) to promote one’s continual growth and/or, in certain cases, dependent variable of psychological well-being.
    [Show full text]
  • The Comprehensive Measure of Meaning: Psychological and Philosophical Foundations
    Hanson, J.A. and VanderWeele, T.J., The Comprehensive Measure of Meaning: psychological and philosophical foundations. In: M. Lee, L.D. Kubzansky, and T.J. VanderWeele (Eds.). Measuring Well-Being: Interdisciplinary Perspectives from the Social 1 Sciences and the Humanities. Oxford University Press, forthcoming. The Comprehensive Measure of Meaning: Psychological and Philosophical Foundations Jeffrey A. Hanson and Tyler J. VanderWeele Harvard University Abstract. The topic of meaning has been of interest both in philosophy and in psychology. The psychology research community has put forward a number of instruments to measure meaning. Considerable debate has taken place within philosophy as to the objective versus subjective status of meaning in life and on the global versus individual or personal aspects of meaning. Here we make use of an emerging consensus in the psychology literature concerning a tripartite structure of meaning as cognitive coherence, affective significance, and motivational direction. However, we enrich this understanding with important distinctions drawn from the philosophical literature to distinguish subdomains within this tripartite understanding. We use the relevant philosophical distinctions to classify existing measurement items into a seven-fold structure intended to more comprehensively assess an individual’s sense of meaning. The proposed measure, with three items in each subdomain drawn from previous scales, constitutes what we put forward as the Comprehensive Measure of Meaning. We hope that this measure will enrich the empirical research on the assessment of, and on the causes and effects of, having a sense of meaning. Introduction Meaning is now widely recognized as essential to human well-being, and numerous studies have documented the association between perceived meaningfulness and a host of improved psychological benefits.
    [Show full text]
  • The Search for Meaning in Life – Theoretical, Experiential, and Educational Aspects
    See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/292371678 THE SEARCH FOR MEANING IN LIFE – THEORETICAL, EXPERIENTIAL, AND EDUCATIONAL ASPECTS Article · January 2016 READS 9 1 author: Pninit Russo-Netzer University of Haifa 10 PUBLICATIONS 7 CITATIONS SEE PROFILE Available from: Pninit Russo-Netzer Retrieved on: 19 May 2016 Russo-Netzer, P. (2015). The search for meaning in life–theoretical, experiential, and educational aspects. The International Forum for Logotherapy, 38, 72-78. THE SEARCH FOR MEANING IN LIFE – THEORETICAL, EXPERIENTIAL, AND EDUCATIONAL ASPECTS Pninit Russo-Netzer Ultimately, life is a gift and meaning is its reward. So is the art and ability of asking questions. The meaning of life is to be found in the question that becomes encounter. Then every moment becomes a moment of grace. –Elie Wiesel Searching for meaning in life appears to reflect the essence of being human. Meaning in life is considered one of the central ultimate concerns with which philosophers, religions, social scientists, poets, and laypeople alike have struggled across cultures and throughout history. As suggested by Frankl, the search for meaning is "the primary motivational force” in human beings (Frankl, 1963, p.121) and may constitute a healthy, natural, and engaging process that is often characterized by an openness to ideas about life (Steger, Kashdan, Sullivan, & Lorentz, 2008). The inherently private nature of the construct of meaning calls for a multidimensional and holistic view to explore more closely how it is experienced subjectively by individuals themselves. This article briefly outlines three areas to advance understanding and practice of the human search for meaning: (a) theoretical aspects of the search, (b) experiential exploration of what encourages people to search for meaning, and (c) educational venues to enhance the ability to search for and find meaning from a young age.
    [Show full text]
  • Types of Meaningfulness of Life and Values of Future Teachers
    INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL & SCIENCE EDUCATION 2016, VOL. 11, NO. 8, 1943-1950 OPEN ACCESS DOI: 10.12973/ijese.2016.568a Types of Meaningfulness of Life and Values of Future Teachers Nailia R. Salikhovaa aKazan (Volga region) Federal University, Kazan, RUSSIA ABSTRACT The leading role of meaning of life in regulation of human’s activity of all types provides the relevance of the research. The goal of the paper is to identify and describe types of meaningfulness of life in future teachers, and to reveal the specificity of values hierarchy indicative of each type. The leading approach applied in the research was the combination of qualitative methods aimed to identify types of meaning of life on the basis of essays analysis with quantitative comparison of types revealed according to the structure of values hierarchy. The paper describes types of meaning of life set by criteria of awareness of meaning of life and satisfaction with life. There were found 6 types of meaningfulness of life: unconscious satisfaction, unconscious dissatisfaction, unconscious avoiding, conscious satisfaction, conscious dissatisfaction and conscious denial. Comparative analysis of their valuable specifics was carried out. Materials from the paper are of practical importance for psychological support of future teachers’ training. KEYWORDS ARTICLE HISTORY Education, value, meaning of life, types of Received 01 April 2016 meaningfulness of life, future teacher Revised 9 May 2016 Accepted 24 May 2016 Introduction Urgency of the Problem The meaning of life is a necessary basis for human life (Frankl, 1963). Its role is especially important at the beginning of adulthood, formation of any experts, teachers as well (Vogler & Ebersole, 1980).
    [Show full text]
  • Why Meaning Does in Fact Matter: an Exploration of Meaning in Life and Its Impact on Well-Being Melissa Emily Grouden a Thesis S
    Why Meaning Does in Fact Matter: An Exploration of Meaning in Life and its Impact on Well-Being Melissa Emily Grouden A thesis submitted to Victoria University of Wellington in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology Victoria University of Wellington 2014 Abstract Human beings are naturally inclined to search for, and achieve meaning in life as a means of understanding life events, and integrating them into a coherent whole. Although the experience of possessing meaning in life has been widely researched, the process of searching for meaning which is of utmost importance, has been largely neglected (Steger, 2009). These two constructs are argued to be related, yet distinct from one another, and they share a weak inverse relationship (e.g., Steger & Kashdan, 2006). However, searching for meaning does not appear to lead to the attainment of meaning as one might intuitively expect (Steger, Kashdan, Sullivan, & Lorentz, 2008). As research has tended to be cross-sectional, there is scope to explore how the relationship between these two constructs unfolds over time. Meaning in life appears to share a positive relationship with well-being such that happiness and life satisfaction are elevated, and depression reduced; however, search for meaning has been shown to have the opposite pattern of correlates (Park, Park, & Peterson, 2010). Given that searching for meaning is an instinctual human motivation, it is important that research investigate whether it does share positive relations with well-being under certain conditions, and whether these relationships are evidenced longitudinally too. Additionally research has considered whether certain personal qualities might be closely linked to both searching for, and having meaning in life (e.g., McAdams, 2012; Michael & Snyder, 2005; Steger et al., 2008).
    [Show full text]
  • Some Key Differences Between a Happy Life and a Meaningful Life Roy F
    This article was downloaded by: [Roy F. Baumeister] On: 22 August 2013, At: 13:17 Publisher: Routledge Informa Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954 Registered office: Mortimer House, 37-41 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH, UK The Journal of Positive Psychology: Dedicated to furthering research and promoting good practice Publication details, including instructions for authors and subscription information: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/rpos20 Some key differences between a happy life and a meaningful life Roy F. Baumeistera, Kathleen D. Vohsb, Jennifer L. Aakerc & Emily N. Garbinskyc a Department of Psychology, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL 32306-4301, USA; b Department of Marketing, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA; c Department of Marketing, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA Published online: 20 Aug 2013. To cite this article: The Journal of Positive Psychology (2013): Some key differences between a happy life and a meaningful life, The Journal of Positive Psychology: Dedicated to furthering research and promoting good practice, DOI: 10.1080/17439760.2013.830764 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2013.830764 PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE Taylor & Francis makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of all the information (the “Content”) contained in the publications on our platform. However, Taylor & Francis, our agents, and our licensors make no representations or warranties whatsoever as to the accuracy, completeness, or suitability for any purpose of the Content. Any opinions and views expressed in this publication are the opinions and views of the authors, and are not the views of or endorsed by Taylor & Francis.
    [Show full text]