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Samantha J. Heintzelman

Bio: Samantha J. Heintzelman is an academic researcher from Rutgers University. The author has contributed to research in topics: Meaning (existential) & Happiness. The author has an hindex of 17, co-authored 36 publications receiving 1392 citations. Previous affiliations of Samantha J. Heintzelman include University of Missouri & University of Virginia.

Papers
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TL;DR: In this paper, the authors describe five sets of recent findings on subjective well-being: (a) the multidimensionality of SWB, (b) circumstances that influence long-term SWB; (c) cultural differences in SWB and (d) the beneficial effects of SWBs on health and social relationships; and (e) interventions to increase SWBs.
Abstract: Recent decades have seen rapid growth in the science of subjective well-being (SWB), with 14,000 publications a year now broaching the topic. The insights of this growing scholarly literature can be helpful to psychologists working both in research and applied areas. The authors describe 5 sets of recent findings on SWB: (a) the multidimensionality of SWB; (b) circumstances that influence long-term SWB; (c) cultural differences in SWB; (d) the beneficial effects of SWB on health and social relationships; and (e) interventions to increase SWB. In addition, they outline the implications of these findings for the helping professions, organizational psychology, and for researchers. Finally, they describe current developments in national accounts of well-being, which capture the quality of life in societies beyond economic indicators and point toward policies that can enhance societal well-being. Nous avons assisté lors des dernières décennies à une forte croissance de la science du bien-être subjectif, les publications se chiffrant actuellement à environ 14 000 par année. Les constats dont cette littérature savante grandissante font état peuvent être utiles aux psychologues œuvrant dans les domaines de la psychologie appliquée et de la recherche. Les auteurs y décrivent cinq ensembles de récents constats au sujet du bien-être subjectif : (a) la multidimensionnalité du bien-être subjectif; (b) les circonstances qui influencent le bien-être subjectif; (c) l’impact des différences culturelles sur le bien-être subjectif; (d) les effets bénéfiques du bien-être subjectif sur la santé et les relations sociales; et (e) les interventions visant à augmenter le bien-être subjectif. On y précise également les implications de ces constats pour les professions d’aide, la psychologie organisationnelle et les chercheurs. Finalement, les auteurs y décrivent les développements actuels des témoignages de bien-être, lesquels rendent compte de la qualité de vie dans les sociétés, au-delà des indicateurs économiques, et nous guident vers des politiques visant à augmenter le bien-être de la société.

403 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: It is suggested that if meaning in life plays a role in adaptation, it must be commonplace, as the analysis suggests.
Abstract: The human experience of meaning in life is widely viewed as a cornerstone of well-being and a central human motivation. Self-reports of meaning in life relate to a host of important functional outcomes. Psychologists have portrayed meaning in life as simultaneously chronically lacking in human life as well as playing an important role in survival. Examining the growing literature on meaning in life, we address the question "How meaningful is life, in general?" We review possible answers from various psychological sources, some of which anticipate that meaning in life should be low and others that it should be high. Summaries of epidemiological data and research using two self-report measures of meaning in life suggest that life is pretty meaningful. Diverse samples rate themselves significantly above the midpoint on self-reports of meaning in life. We suggest that if meaning in life plays a role in adaptation, it must be commonplace, as our analysis suggests.

374 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: It is demonstrated that manipulations that foster an associative mindset enhance meaning and challenges assumptions about meaning, including its motivational appeal, the roles of expectancies and novelty in this experience, and the notion that meaning is inherently constructed.
Abstract: The desire for meaning is recognized as a central human motive. Yet, knowing that people want meaning does not explain its function. What adaptive problem does this experience solve? Drawing on the feelings-as-information hypothesis, we propose that the feeling of meaning provides information about the presence of reliable patterns and coherence in the environment, information that is not provided by affect. We review research demonstrating that manipulations of stimulus coherence influence subjective reports of meaning in life but not affect. We demonstrate that manipulations that foster an associative mindset enhance meaning. The meaning-as-information perspective embeds meaning in a network of foundational functions including associative learning, perception, cognition, and neural processing. This approach challenges assumptions about meaning, including its motivational appeal, the roles of expectancies and novelty in this experience, and the notion that meaning is inherently constructed. Implications ...

136 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Four studies tested the prediction that exposure to objective coherence (vs. incoherence) would lead to higher reports of meaning in life, and implications for understanding the human experience of meaning, the processes that support that experience, and its potential role in adaptation are discussed.
Abstract: The experience of meaning is often conceptualized as involving reliable pattern or coherence. However, research has not addressed whether exposure to pattern or coherence influences the phenomenological experience of meaning in life. Four studies tested the prediction that exposure to objective coherence (vs. incoherence) would lead to higher reports of meaning in life. In Studies 1 and 2 (combined N = 214), adults rated photographs of trees presented in patterns (organized around their seasonal content) or randomly. Participants in the pattern conditions reported higher meaning in life than those in the random conditions. Studies 3 and 4 (combined N = 229) yielded similar results when participants read coherent, as opposed to incoherent, linguistic triads. The manipulations did not influence explicit or implicit affect. Implications for understanding the human experience of meaning, the processes that support that experience, and its potential role in adaptation are discussed.

122 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This paper found that the experience of meaning in life may come from unexpectedly quotidian sources, including positive mood and coherent life experiences, and that the experiences of meaning may be quite more commonplace than is often portrayed.
Abstract: Recent advances in the science of meaning in life have taught us a great deal about the nature of the experience of meaning in life, its antecedents and consequences, and its potential functions. Conclusions based on self-report measures of meaning in life indicate that, as might be expected, it is associated with many aspects of positive functioning. However, this research also indicates that the experience of meaning in life may come from unexpectedly quotidian sources, including positive mood and coherent life experiences. Moreover, the experience of meaning in life may be quite a bit more commonplace than is often portrayed. Attending to the emerging science of meaning in life suggests not only potentially surprising conclusions but new directions for research on this important aspect of well-being.

111 citations


Cited by
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01 Nov 2008

2,686 citations

Journal Article
TL;DR: The article reviews the book "Alone Together: Why the authors expect more from technology and less from each other," by Sherry Turkle.
Abstract: The article reviews the book "Alone Together: Why We Expect More From Technology and Less From Each Other," by Sherry Turkle.

1,242 citations

Journal ArticleDOI

802 citations