Comprehension, purpose, and mattering? A latent profile analysis of laypeople’s beliefs about meaning in life

Characteristics and Correlates of Meaning in Life Profiles among Chinese Rural Adolescents

The meaning in life (MIL) in adolescence is crucial in the developmental process of life. Anchored in the Integrated Model of Meaning Making and the Dual-Systems Model of Meaning, the present study aimed to explore the MIL profiles among Chinese rural adolescents and their characteristics, as well as the role of depression, well-being, character strengths, and academic encouragement in differentiating the MIL profiles. A sample of 579 adolescents from rural China (Mean age = 15.33, SD = 1.69, aged from 12 to 19, female = 56.47%) participated in the survey. Latent profile analysis examined six dimensions of MIL: search for meaning, presence of meaning, need for meaning, meaning confusion, meaning anxiety, and meaning avoidance. Four profiles with different meaning characteristics were revealed: Meaning Oriented profile (18.48%), Bewildered profile (17.62%), Perfunctory profile (51.47%), and Indifferent profile (12.44%). The Meaning Oriented profile had the highest well-being scores and the lowest depression scores compared to the other three profiles. Adolescents with higher character strengths or academic encouragement were less likely to be in the other three profiles than in the Meaning-Oriented profile. The current findings suggest the need for targeted intervention strategies for adolescents with different MIL profiles.

Existential Meaninglessness Scale: Scale Development and Psychometric Properties

Grounded in a tripartite existential meaninglessness model, the authors developed the 18-item Existential Meaninglessness Scale (EMS) to assess one’s concern and anxiety of existential meaninglessness. Across three samples, the EMS’s factor structure and evidence of convergent, criterion-related, and incremental validity, internal consistency, and test–retest reliability were examined. Exploratory factor analyses demonstrated three dimensions of the EMS: incomprehension, purposelessness, and insignificance. Confirmatory factor analyses revealed that a bifactor model was a better fit to the data than other models. The bifactor model provided evidence for a general factor and measurement invariance. Ancillary bifactor indices indicated EMS’s unidimensionality. Findings of bivariate correlations and hierarchical regression analyses provided evidence for different aspects of construct validity and internal consistency. Both the Concern and Anxiety measures of the EMS positively predicted depressive symptoms and suicide ideation above and beyond the effects of general existential meaninglessness, general feelings of anxiety, and presence of meaning in life. Based on the findings, the authors discuss future research directions on existential meaninglessness using the EMS.