Are we experiencing a meaning crisis? There are many people who think we are. They cite the decline of religious faith, marriage and family formation, national pride, trust in institutions, and civic engagement, as well as a rise in anxiety, depression, loneliness, political polarization, and pessimism about the future.
Many of these trends are especially pronounced among younger Americans, suggesting that if there is a meaning crisis, it may be generational. Indeed, surveys find that Gen Z adults are less likely than adults in older generations to report perceiving their lives as meaningful.
I believe there are reasons to worry about the state of existential wellbeing in our country. In fact, in 2018 I wrote an essay for the New York Times making the case that the rise in suicide rates is, in part, a crisis of meaning. Numerous studies find that perceptions of meaninglessness are strongly associated with suicide and other forms of self-destructive behavior such as drug abuse.
More broadly, meaning plays a vital role in both psychological and physical health because it is a self-regulatory and motivational resource. It inspires and drives us. When we have a strong sense of meaning, we are more resilient when experiencing life's difficulties and more persistent in pursuing the aspirations that improve our situation and the world around us.
However, more recently, I've been thinking about how our discussions about a crisis of meaning could be improved by better recognizing that humans have always faced existential threats and grappled with existential uncertainties that can destabilize perceptions of meaning. Throughout history, people have confronted wars, plagues, natural disasters, economic upheavals, and technological and cultural changes. At a more personal level, we've always faced the inevitable tragedies, failures, and disappointments that characterize the human condition. These challenges make meaning-making an ongoing endeavor.
This reveals the agentic nature of meaning. We feel most meaningful when we are actively engaged in purposeful action, not when we are passive recipients of good circumstances. This was true for our ancestors and it's true for us. In other words, meaning isn't something that is just provided to us by external structures, institutions, or other people. It is something we have to earn through our choices, efforts, and commitments. After all, the establishment and continued existence of these structures, institutions, and relationships depends on human action. We have to build them and keep them going if we care about them.
Scientific and technological progress has made our lives easier and more comfortable, and we should be grateful for that. But ease and comfort don't generate meaning. We have to roll up our sleeves and do the work of developing our talents, strengthening our character, and finding ways to contribute to the world around us.
This requires recognizing that even in difficult situations, we often have more agency than we realize. Viktor Frankl, a Holocaust survivor and psychiatrist whose work has greatly influenced my research and writing, famously observed that even in the most extreme circumstances, people could find ways to maintain meaning by focusing on what remained within their control: their attitudes, their responses, their capacity to care for others.
What about meaningful experiences that seem relatively effortless? Consider experiences of awe and beauty. Research indicates that they provide meaning, but this still requires intentional effort on our part. As I discussed in a previous newsletter, to gain the existential benefits of aesthetic experiences requires mindful engagement. We have to slow down and observe the world around us, paying attention to how even routine experiences can reveal depths of beauty and significance we might otherwise miss. Take our relationship with digital devices, which many say have made us more distracted. But ultimately we are in control. We decide how and when to use them, and we can choose to put them down and be present with the beauty around us.
We might be facing existential issues that are unique to contemporary life, but the timeless dimension of the human condition can provide needed perspective on current anxieties about meaning. Yes, we face real challenges, but we're not the first generation to do so. Just as previous generations found ways to create meaning amid their particular struggles, we too can find ways to meet our existential needs.
A meaningful life takes work. But the good news is it's work that any of us can do, starting right where we are. If you're worried we are in a meaning crisis, you can take action right now to help people, especially young people, realize they have the power and responsibility to live meaningful lives. We don't have to wait for perfect circumstances, ideal leaders, or transformed social institutions to begin living meaningfully.
Have a great weekend!
Clay