Viewing Meaning in Life in Three Generations: A Qualitative Study in Turkey

Abstract

The aim of this study was to understand meaning in life as a phenomenon in three different stages of life. Accordingly, this study aimed to investigate the similarities and differences in the way those in emerging, middle and late adulthood from different families view and experience meaning in life. In the 14 Turkish families who participated in this study, the children were in emerging adulthood, the parents in middle adulthood and the grandparents in late adulthood. The data were collected through one-on-one semi-structured interviews. Based on the questions of the semi-structured questionnaire, five main themes were identified, and the data were analyzed in view of these five themes. The main themes identified were: sources of meaning, meaningful life experiences, search for meaning, goals in life and present meaning. The emerged categories were presented separately for three developmental stages. The results were discussed in light of the literature and some suggestions were made for future research.