Converging Paths Toward Meaning

Abstract

This article summarizes the current discussion of personal meaning in the context of the history of the psychological study of the construct of meaning. The first section provides an historical overview of the psychological study of meaning, including the recent surge of publications during the past 5 years that have emphasized the task of dialogical integration. The second section reviews the articles included in this issue from the viewpoint of their contributions to this integration. The results of this round of discussions are summarized as three statements that might serve as the basis for a consensus regarding the construct of personal meaning: (a) the importance of the construct of meaning; (b) its tripartite structure, including motivational, emotional, and cognitive components; and (c) its irreducibility to either objective or subjective components, and the importance of understanding the holistic quality of meaning emerging in the interplay of the two realms.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The article was prepared within the framework of a subsidy granted to the Higher School of Economics by the government of the Russian Federation for the implementation of the Global Competitiveness Program. I am deeply indebted to Dr. Gordon Medlock for multiple improvements he proposed to give the article its final shape.