Purpose In Life As Ancient but Nascent Perspectives from Psychology, Philosophy, and Human Development
Book contents
- Purpose in Life as Ancient but Nascent
- Purpose in Life as Ancient but Nascent
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Tables
- Contributors
- Chapter 1 Purpose as an Ancient yet Nascent Construct
- Chapter 2 The Moral Purpose of Wisdom
- Chapter 3 Is Purpose Findable?
- Chapter 4 The Affluence–Purpose Paradox
- Chapter 5 Positive Transitions to Adulthood
- Chapter 6 Undergraduate Students’ Purpose and Persistence in Higher Education
- Chapter 7 How Institutions of Higher Education Support and Thwart Students’ Negotiations of Identity and Self-Direction
- Chapter 8 How to Cultivate Sense of Purpose and Life Engagement
- Chapter 9 You Live, You Learn
- Chapter 10 Seizing the Power of Religion to Shape Purpose
- Chapter 11 Religious Faith and Life Purpose
- Chapter 12 Where Does Purpose Belong in Well-Being Theory?
- Chapter 13 Self-Compassion and Ikigai
- Chapter 14 Purpose as a Timeless Pursuit
- Index
- References
Chapter 12 - Where Does Purpose Belong in Well-Being Theory?
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 31 October 2025
Book contents
- Purpose in Life as Ancient but Nascent
- Purpose in Life as Ancient but Nascent
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Tables
- Contributors
- Chapter 1 Purpose as an Ancient yet Nascent Construct
- Chapter 2 The Moral Purpose of Wisdom
- Chapter 3 Is Purpose Findable?
- Chapter 4 The Affluence–Purpose Paradox
- Chapter 5 Positive Transitions to Adulthood
- Chapter 6 Undergraduate Students’ Purpose and Persistence in Higher Education
- Chapter 7 How Institutions of Higher Education Support and Thwart Students’ Negotiations of Identity and Self-Direction
- Chapter 8 How to Cultivate Sense of Purpose and Life Engagement
- Chapter 9 You Live, You Learn
- Chapter 10 Seizing the Power of Religion to Shape Purpose
- Chapter 11 Religious Faith and Life Purpose
- Chapter 12 Where Does Purpose Belong in Well-Being Theory?
- Chapter 13 Self-Compassion and Ikigai
- Chapter 14 Purpose as a Timeless Pursuit
- Index
- References
Summary
Is purpose a cause, consequence, correlate, or component of well-being? Sense of purpose can be understood as the extent to which one feels that they have personally meaningful goals and directions guiding them through life. Because models of well-being differ in how they conceptualize what it means to be psychologically well, purpose is treated differently across these frameworks. In this chapter, we begin by considering how purpose fits in various well-being theories, including philosophical schools of thought (Liking, Wanting, and Needing theories), contemporary theoretical and measurement models (e.g., subjective well-being, Value Fulfillment Theory, Ryff’s psychological well-being, self-determination theory, Positive emotion, Engagement, Relationships, Meaning, and Accomplishments, and other factors such as health (PERMA+)), and mechanistic models that seek the synthesize across multiple approaches (e.g., Engine Model of Well-Being, Eudaimonic Activity Model). We conclude by answering the question proposed in the title of this chapter, “Where does purpose belong in well-being theory?”, and by offering specific recommendations for purpose and well-being researchers.
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- Purpose In Life As Ancient but NascentPerspectives from Psychology, Philosophy, and Human Development, pp. 254 - 267Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2025
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