Examining the Temporal Associations Between Religious Motivations and Meaning in Life: A Self-Determination...

Self-Determination Theory posits that the internalization of motivations for behaviors is essential for cultivating a sense of meaning in life (MIL). Psychology of religion scholars also postulate that the internalization of religious motivations for behaviors is necessary to develop a coherent sense of MIL. Yet, we still lack robust longitudinal evidence for either of these propositions.

In a preregistered, longitudinal study, we investigated the temporal associations between three types of motivations (i.e., external, introjected, and identified) for religious practices and MIL judgments among N = 2056 emerging adults with four measurement occasions spaced 6 months apart using three random-intercept cross-lagged panel models.

Between-persons, we found that external and introjected motivation were negatively associated, and identified motivation was positively associated with MIL judgments. Within-persons, we found unidirectional associations between the controlled forms of motivation and MIL judgments, whereby external and introjected motivation negatively predicted subsequent MIL judgments. We also found reciprocal within-person effects between identified motivation and MIL judgments.

These findings highlight the need to take different motivations into account when studying the effects of religion on MIL, as the specific motivation can either promote or undermine emerging adults' sense of MIL over time.