The multidimensional existential meaning scale: a tripartite approach to measuring meaning in life
Abstract
To address conceptual difficulties and advance research on meaning in life (MIL), it may be useful to adopt a tripartite view of meaning as consisting of comprehension, purpose, and mattering. This paper discusses the development of the Multidimensional Existential Meaning Scale (MEMS), which explicitly assesses these three subconstructs. Results from three samples of undergraduates showed the MEMS to have favorable psychometric properties (e.g. good factor structure and reliability) and demonstrated that it can effectively differentiate the three subconstructs of meaning. Regression and relative importance analyses showed that each MEMS subscale carried predictive power for relevant variables and other meaning measures. Additionally, the MEMS subscales demonstrated theoretically consistent, differential associations with other variables (e.g. dogmatism, behavioral activation, and spirituality). Overall, results suggest that the MEMS may offer more conceptual precision than existing measures, and it may open new avenues of research and facilitate a more nuanced understanding of MIL.
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The MEMS subscales showed adequate internal consistency: Comprehension (π = 91), Purpose (π = 92), and Mattering (π = 86).
“The three MEMS subscales showed adequate internal consistency: Comprehension (ϖ = 91), Purpose (ϖ = 92), and Mattering (ϖ = 86).”
From Spanish Adaptation of Meaning-Centered Psychotherapy for Participants With Cancer: Study Protocol of a Randomized Control Trial (2022) · cites this paper as [35]
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Religiousness and meaning making following stressful life events
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Does Being a Sport Fan Provide Meaning in Life?
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Existential Meaninglessness Scale: Scale Development and Psychometric Properties
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What makes a life meaningful? Folk intuitions about the content and shape of meaningful lives
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The role of meaning in life in psychological distress during the COVID-19 pandemic
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Eudaimonic self-expansion: The effects of eudaimonic reflections on nature connectedness
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Giving Birth to Meaning: Understanding Parenthood Through the Psychology of Meaning in Life
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What makes me matter? Investigating how and why people feel significant
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U.S. college students’ lay beliefs about hope: A mixed-methods study
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The Beyond-Human Natural World: Providing Meaning and Making Meaning
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Purpose maintained: Adverse childhood experiences and meaning in life
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An everlasting love: The relationship of happiness and meaning
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Meaning‐oriented consumption: A systematic review and research agenda
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Happiness Goal Orientations and their Associations with Well-Being
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The Comprehensive Measure of Meaning
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The pros and cons of having a meaningful life
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Belief in a just world and well-being: A daily diary perspective
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Pandemia COVID-19. Perspektywa psychologiczna
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Meaning, religious/spiritual struggles, and well-being
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Delving into the Role of Creativity on Meaning in Life: A Multiple Mediation Model
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Zawadzki, B., Popiel, A., Bielecki, M., Mroziński, B., & Pragłowska, E. (2022) · Wydawnictwo Liberi Libri eBooks · doi:10.47943/lib.9788363487607.rozdzial03 · Cited by 13 · see citing works
Nowe wyzwania dla neuropsychologii klinicznej: studia przypadku osób zakażonych wirusem SARS-CoV-2
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Rodziny z dziećmi i nastolatkami w czasach pandemii COVID- 19. Złożony obraz relacji
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Sprawczość i wspólnotowość a lęk i samopoczucie w trakcie pandemii COVID-19
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The Christian Sanctification of Suffering Scale: measure development and relationship to well-being
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COVID-19 a zaburzenia obsesyjno-kompulsyjne: czy pandemia zmienia obraz OCD?
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- Authors
- George, L. S., & Park, C. L.
- Affiliations
- University of Connecticut (US)
- Corresponding author
- George, Login S.
- Venue
- The Journal of Positive Psychology
- Publisher
- Informa UK Limited
- Published
- 2016-07-26
- Volume
- 12
- Issue
- 6
- Pages
- 613-627
- ISSN
- 1743-9760 (ISSN-L)
- 1743-9779
- OpenAlex
- W2504320773
- Cited by
- 379
- References
- 73
- Citations by year
- 2026: 36 · 2025: 58 · 2024: 50 · 2023: 51 · 2022: 66 · 2021: 48 · 2020: 32 · 2019: 19 · 2018: 11 · 2017: 7 · 2016: 1
- FWCI
- 19.92
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- The Journal of Positive Psychology (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Psychological Well-being and Life Satisfaction
- Social Sciences › Health › Religion, Spirituality, and Psychology
- Social Sciences › Decision Sciences › Management Science and Operations Research › Psychometric Methodologies and Testing
- Keywords
- meaning in life, existential meaning, purpose, mattering, comprehension, scale development, psychometric properties, dogmatism, behavioral activation, spirituality, relative importance analysis
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