Do meaning in life interventions work among non-clinical populations? systematic literature review

Abstract

Meaning in life has been a central concept in Positive Psychology for over two decades, often related to reducing mental health issues. This paper investigates the effectiveness of Positive Psychology interventions from various perspectives among nonclinical populations. A systematic analysis was conducted to assess selected interventions in enhancing meaning in life outcome. The analysis included 26 studies with 3701 non-clinical participants across six continents and three sectors. Of the 30 intervention studies (83.3%), most showed statistical significance in improving meaning in life. However, there is a lack of empirical studies examining the tripartite framework of meaning in life interventions, leaving these constructs underexplored in the literature. Furthermore, the tripartite scale of meaning in life, which measures three dimensions, has yet to be fully utilised. The paper concludes that further research is necessary to enhance the effectiveness of MiL interventions, particularly those addressing the three aspects of meaning in life.