Do sources of meaning differentially predict search for meaning, presence of meaning, and wellbeing?

Abstract

Meaning in life is vital for human wellbeing. Research has examined important sources of meaning: however, it has not yet investigated whether certain sources of meaning might be more predictive of overall meaning and wellbeing. A community sample of 247 individuals (30 -69 years) rated the degree of meaningfulness they experienced in certain domains and completed 11 wellbeing measures. Presence of meaning was positively predicted by family and interpersonal relations, and negatively by leisure activities; search for meaning was positively predicted by personal growth and religiosity/spirituality. Meaning from family and health aided in the process of searching for meaning leading to presence of meaning; similarly, meaning from family, interpersonal relationships, health, religiosity/spirituality and life in general buffered against impoverished wellbeing when searching for meaning. Presence and wellbeing were both higher if the domains of work, family, interpersonal relations, community/society issues, and life in general were highly endorsed. Lastly, highly endorsing a larger number of sources buffered against negative wellbeing outcomes when searching for meaning. Overall, we found that meaning from important domains such as family and interpersonal relationships, and strongly endorsing a wide variety of sources, protected against negative wellbeing outcomes when searching for meaning.

Sources of well-being for older adults with and without dementia in residential care: relations to presence of meaning and life satisfaction

“…Other authors have also found that meaning in life scores are most strongly explained by the sources family and relationships (Grouden & Jose, 2015;Lambert et al, 2010;Lambert et al, 2013), while happiness has also been associated with more satisfying interpersonal relationships with family and friends (Diener & Seligman, 2002).…”

“…our first aim). However, sources might be very salient and therefore rated high on meaningfulness, but they may not contribute to the overall experience of meaning or other aspects of well-being (Grouden & Jose, 2015).…”

Identity and Purpose as Predictors of Subjective Well-Being in Emerging Adulthood

“…Asimismo, un bajo nivel de sentido de vida se relaciona con desesperanza, depresión, dependencia a sustancias, conductas autolesivas y suicidio, entre otras variables indicativas de disfuncionalidad psicológica (García-Alandete, Marco & Pérez, 2014; Kleiman & Beaver, 2013). De la misma manera, varios estudios informan de una relación negativa entre el sentido de vida y algunos trastornos mentales, y relaciones positivas entre el sentido de vida y la salud mental, el funcionamiento psicológico, el optimismo, la satisfacción vital, la aceptación de la enfermedad y el bienestar psicológico, tanto en preadolescentes y adolescentes (Brassai, Piko & Steger, 2011;Mulders, 2011;Rathi & Rastogi, 2007) como en adultos y personas mayores (Burrow, Sumner & Ong, 2014;Grouden & Jose, 2015;Krause & Hayward, 2014), profesores (Damásio, de Melo & da Silva, 2013), y pacientes con cáncer (Scrignaro et al, 2015), con dolor crónico (Dezutter, Luyckx & Wachholtz, 2015) y con cuidados de enfermería a domicilio (Gorill, 2013;Haugan & Mosknes, 2013).…”

Elucidating the constructs happiness and wellbeing: A mixed-methods approach

“…For example, Marar (2003) contrasts freedom and justification (or meaningmaking) in his conceptualization of happiness. Meaning-making entails creating a sense of order and purpose in life through the pursuit of goals (Grouden & Jose, 2015). This way of viewing happiness as a balancing act between being able to do what one wants, but also being tied to meaningful people and activities, fits well with the notions that participants mention in their interviews.…”