PERCEIVED MEANING OF LIFE AND SATISFACTION WITH LIFE
A research synthesis using an on-line findings-archive
Yomna Sameer, Yasmine Eid & Ruut Veenhoven
In: Frontiers in Psychology Section Positive Psychology, 2022, 13:957235. DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.957235
ABSTRACT
‘Meaning’ and ‘happiness’ are leading topics in Positive Pychology but their relationship is not well understood. A first step to better understanding is to inspect the pattern of correlations found in the research literature. In this paper we focus on the relationship between perceived meaning of life and satisfaction with life, taking stock of the available research findings on their co-occurrence. Specifically we seek answers to the following questions of fact:
- Is there a correlation between perceived meaning of life and satisfaction with life?
- If so, is that correlation positive or negative?
- How strong is this correlation?
- How variable is this correlation across persons and situations?
- Do the correlations differ across components of happiness?
- What aspects of meaning are most/least associated with happiness?
- What sources of meaning are most/least associated with happiness?
- Does seeing meaning relate differently to happiness than searching for meaning?
We used data from the World Database of Happiness, which holds standardized descriptions of 171 observed relations between perceived meaning of life and satisfaction with life. The standardized technique used in this on-line findings-archive allows a condensed presentation of the rich findings in this field, while providing the reader with access to the full details of the underlying studies.
We found that perceived meaning of life and satisfaction with life are closely related at the micro-level of individuals, but not at the macro-level of nations. We explored the possible causal mechanisms behind these correlations.
Keywords: happiness, meaning, purpose, research review
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