Special Issue Introduction: The Meaning and Measurement of Thriving: A View of the Issues

Lerner, Richard M.; Eye, Alexander von; Lerner, Jacqueline V.; Lewin‐Bizan, Selva; Bowers, Edmond P.

doi:10.1007/s10964-010-9531-8

Cited by 139 publications

(119 citation statements)

References 49 publications

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“…The 4-H Study of PYD The 4-H Study of PYD (e.g., Lerner et al 2005Lerner et al , 2009Lerner et al , 2010Lerner et al , 2011 seeks to identify the individual and ecological relationships that may promote thriving and that, as well, may have a preventive effect in regard to risk/problem behaviors. Within the 4-H Study, thriving is seen as the growth of attributes that mark a flourishing, healthy young person, for example, the characteristics termed the ''Five Cs'' of PYD-competence, confidence, character, connection, and caring (Eccles and Gootman 2002;Lerner et al 2005;Roth and Brooks-Gunn 2003a, b).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Special Section Introduction: Thriving in Context: Findings from the 4-H Study of Positive Youth Development

Geldhof

Bowers

Lerner

2012

J Youth Adolescence

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The positive youth development perspective, a strength-based relational developmental systems model that focuses on mutually influential relationships between individuals and contexts, has been used to study thriving across the second decade of life. However, more attention has been paid empirically to identifying the features of the individual (e.g., intentional self regulation, hope, or purpose) or to enumerating the role of context-general ecological assets than to the nature of individual-context relationships linked to thriving within specific contexts. The goal of this special section is to provide initial research reports about contextspecific instances of the thriving process. The research focuses on two contexts where many youth spend a considerable amount, and often the majority, of their timeschool and out-of-school time sports activities.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Special Section Introduction: Thriving in Context: Findings from the 4-H Study of Positive Youth Development

Geldhof

Bowers

Lerner

2012

J Youth Adolescence

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“…One way of analyzing positive resources and development is the Positive Youth Development (PYD) theory that is based on positive psychological thinking (Lerner, 2009; see also Lerner et al, 2010). Positive psychology refers to a wide spectrum of concepts that describe positive emotions, character strengths, and positive institutions (see e.g., Seligman et al, 2005;Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi, 2000) that enable human beings' optimal, positive action (see Gable & Haidt, 2005;Linley et al, 2006).…”

Section: Theoretical Backgroundmentioning

confidence: 99%

Finnish university student activists’ resources in student union activities: A Positive Youth Development (PYD) perspective

Ansala¹,

Uusiautti²

2016

IJRSP

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Active citizenship is an important political goal in the Finnish society. In this study, the challenges faced in student activism were studied through twelve student activists' narratives. The activists interviewed in this study were the chairpersons of the Finnish student unions at universities. The study leaned on the Positive Youth Development (PYD) theory. Challenges the interviewees mentioned were categorized into social, functional, emotion, and cognitive challenges and related resources. The positive coping with these challenges was analyzed through the elements of PYD. An especially relevant finding was that the student activists showed the development of active citizenship, which was contrasted as the sixth "C" of PYD, contributions to self, others, and society.

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“…Numerous studies have documented the relationship between a sense of meaning and purpose and well-being in adolescence (Burrow, et al, 2010;Ho et al, 2010;Kiang & Fuligni, 2010;Lerner et al, 2010;). In their study of sense of purpose in youth, Burrow et al (2010) analyzed self-report scales of 318 students and found that adolescents committed to exploring meaning and purpose during their teenage years were also more adaptive, positive, hopeful, and better able to effectively adjust to developmental (2010) reported that being able to make meaning of past life events is also positively related to self-esteem and physical and psychological health.…”

Section: Importance Of Meaning-making In Adolescencementioning

confidence: 99%

Meaning-Making in Early Adolescence: Practices and Perspectives of School Counselors

Schwarz¹

2016

JCPS

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Adolescence is a crucial life stage involving aspects of identity development and decision-making that have potential life-long consequences. A sense of meaning is related to many beneficial factors during adolescence, including psychological health, academic engagement, and overall well-being. This qualitative interview study was designed to investigate middle school counselors' perspectives and practices regarding exploring meaning with their early adolescent students. Analysis of ten individual interviews and a focus group revealed that the school counselor participants did engage in work with middle school students around meaning-making. They primarily helped students to find meaning through identity exploration, specifically focusing on navigating challenging life circumstances, reflecting on behavior, and making meaningful connections. Practical implications for both school counselors and counselor educators are detailed. Author's NotesCorrespondence concerning this article should be sent to Jill E. Schwarz at schwarz@tcnj.edu What is the meaning of life? This question has been asked countless times within many disciplines throughout history. Viktor Frankl purported, however, that people truly desire not just to know the meaning of life in general, but to know specifically the meaning of their own lives (Langle & Skyes, 2006). He explained how meaning could be discovered in three ways: (1) creating something or accomplishing a task; (2) having an experience or encounter with someone; and, (3) through the inevitable suffering in our lives (Frankl, 1984). More recently, researchers have defined meaning in life "as a sense of coherence or understanding of existence, a sense of purpose in one's life, the pursuit and attainment of worthwhile goals, and an accompanying sense of fulfillment" (Ho, Cheung, & Cheung, 2010, p. 2).This search for meaning and purpose often begins in adolescence, a period of life between the ages of 12-18, which is widely recognized as confusing, challenging, and difficult to navigate (Erikson, 1968). Adolescents are not only capable of engaging in independent thought related to meaning and purpose (Inhelder & Piaget, 1958), but according to Erikson (1968), the exploration of meaning and purpose during this life stage is an essential task of identity development. Recently, researchers have advocated that adolescence is an optimal time for counselors to explore issues of meaning and purpose with their clients and students (Blair, 2004;Bronk, Hill, Lapsley, Talib, & Finch, 2009;Burrow, O'Dell, & Hill 2010;Damon, Menon, & Bronk, 2003;Ho et al., 2010;McLean, Breen, & Fournier, 2010). Developmentally, as suggested by Erikson (1968) and Piaget (1958), adolescents are ready to begin this exploration, and interventions at this vulnerable life stage could be an important measure. Although this life stage is ripe with changes and negative connotations, adolescents possess strengths that can be fostered to promote thriving, rather than just surviving their teenage years (Lerner, von Eye, L...

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Special Issue Introduction: The Meaning and Measurement of Thriving: A View of the Issues

Cited by 139 publications

References 49 publications

Special Section Introduction: Thriving in Context: Findings from the 4-H Study of Positive Youth Development

Special Section Introduction: Thriving in Context: Findings from the 4-H Study of Positive Youth Development

Finnish university student activists’ resources in student union activities: A Positive Youth Development (PYD) perspective

Meaning-Making in Early Adolescence: Practices and Perspectives of School Counselors

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