BMC Psychology (Oct 2024)
How to influence and cultivate young adults’ life purpose in the process of education: a systematic review of empirical studies
Abstract
Abstract Introduction The objective of this systematic review is to show the features of the recent research in cultivating youth purpose in terms of purpose attributes, purpose determinants, and purpose interventions. Methods We carried out a database search in both Web of Science and Scopus for relevant studies using 21 related research terms. At last, 25 journal articles were encoded by the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Results The results found that young adults’ purpose is frequently examined from three perspectives in the past fifteen years, namely, psychological, sociological, and educational perspectives. From the psychological perspective, the determinants of youth purpose explored in researches included moral identity, self-efficacy, prosocial beliefs, intrinsic motivation, informative feedback, individual personalities and character strength, and health-risk behaviors. The sociological perspective of purpose researches emphasizes on the determinants such as social desirability, family support, parental trust, daily experiences, school support for community service, and student perceptions of teacher supports and teacher competencies. Researchers with an educational perspective emphasize how academic achievement, education level, relationships with mentors, and extra-curricular activities involvement can enhance young adults’ sense of purpose. Discussion The results provide three types of purpose interventions in cultivating youth life purpose: (1) motivating individual positive emotions and character strengths (2), improving support from family, school, and other sources, and (3) encouraging the willingness to participate in social activities. It will be useful for educators and administrators seeking to understand and come up with reasonable and practical intervention measures to nurture young adults’ life purpose.
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