Dynamic interrelations among meaning in life subcomponents and their longitudinal associations with adolescent...

Meaning in life has been shown to play a key role in adolescent mental health. In recent years, researchers have conceptualized it as a multidimensional construct (consists of coherence, purpose, significance, and mattering) and highlight the need to further investigate the interrelations among the subcomponents in diverse populations. This study adopted both the contemporaneous network and cross-lagged panel network (CLPN) analyses to investigate the interrelations among the subcomponents of meaning in life as well as its association with internalizing problems in Chinese adolescents. A total of 1014 Chinese adolescents (55.7% males; M_age = 15.56, SD_age = 0.53) completed self-reported questionnaires at two time points, using a 6-month interval. Results from both contemporaneous network and CLPN analyses consistently revealed the interrelated associations among the subcomponents of meaning in life. Meanwhile, significance was the central subcomponent and could predict the development of other subcomponents 6 months later. It also emerged as the bridge subcomponent linking meaning in life and adolescent internalizing problems, with significance and depression forming a reciprocal negative loop in the temporal network. These findings suggest that significance may be an important entry point for enhancing adolescents' meaning in life, whereas mental health interventions may need to target both meaning-related processes and internalizing symptoms.