One-Third of People are Indifferent to Living Meaningful Lives!

[Riverwolf]

Starting tomorrow I'm going to live a meaningful life, just to see what it's like.

Out of curiosity, what does that mean to you?

 

[dogsgod]

I have no idea what it means.

 

[Sunstone]

With God there are more possibilities, a higher potential, and therefore deeper meanings for life.

Poppycock.

 

[bhaktajan]

One-Third of People are Indifferent to Living Meaningful Lives!

Wow. This must have been the lost chapter missing from George Orwell's book "1984".
I wonder if he had mentioned this within his book?

 

[Nerthus]

With God there are more possibilities, a higher potential, and therefore deeper meanings for life.

With God you are restricted, and you follow what someone else tells you.

 

[Riverwolf]

With God you are restricted, and you follow what someone else tells you.

Well, as long as we're making broad generalizations, don't we all ultimately do what others tell us to do?

 

[Nerthus]

Well, as long as we're making broad generalizations, don't we all ultimately do what others tell us to do?

Such as? I follow the law which is told to me, yes. I went to school, yes.

But, yes that was a broad generalisation - just pointing out to that poster, that people have different opinions on these things.

 

[Riverwolf]

Such as? I follow the law which is told to me, yes. I went to school, yes.

Both of those certainly count as doing what someone else tells you.

That's the problem with the fallacy of generalization.

 

[Nerthus]

Both of those certainly count as doing what someone else tells you.

That's the problem with the fallacy of generalization.

And, I explained the generalisation. Besides, when it comes to being put in prison - I'd rather do what they say and keep outside. But, when it comes to who I love etc - I do what what I want.

 

[Riverwolf]

And, I explained the generalisation.

I hadn't seen your edit when I responded. ^_^

Besides, when it comes to being put in prison - I'd rather do what they say and keep outside. But, when it comes to who I love etc - I do what what I want.

No arguments from me.

And I, personally, want to love God (Bhagavan).

 

[Nerthus]

I hadn't seen your edit when I responded. ^_^
.

No arguments from me.

And I, personally, want to love God (Bhagavan).

I believe some do, of course. I believe what I want to, not what someone else tells me to. Sadly there are people who still do the latter.
I was mainly referring to the Christian God - I think the poster was Christian anyhow, and how he said faith opened up many possibilities. I found that restrictive because of the many churches who repress homosexuality and make people feel they have to conform. I think there are too many threads on being gay right now, it's always on my mind!

 

[blackout]

Starting tomorrow I'm going to live a meaningful life, just to see what it's like.

Your comment is funny, and kind of highlights
what I've been contemplating about this thread.

Whose life is not full of meanings?
(ie. meaning'ful(l) )

Granted, the meanings with which we associate things
as individuals
will vary widely.

I suppose we each associate with the types of meanings,
that.... suit us best, or ... mean the most to us.

It seems reasonable that people who tend to be
very AWARE of "meanings",
will probably feel their lives are meaning-full.
(full of meaning/s)
This in no way diminishes though, or negates, the many meaning/s
inherent in the lives of those less directly concerned
with the concept of "meaning" proper.

Human beings are constructors of meaning.

Some people groove on it.
Some people take it for granted.
Some people think only THEIR meanings can make anyone "full" (of life).
eh.

 

[dust1n]

meaning - (n.) - to kid yourself into making a desirable effect worth pursuing.

 

[Riverwolf]

...making a desirable effect worth pursuing.

...uh, doesn't everybody do that? I mean, we all desire things, and we do what we can to achieve the possible ones.

 

[Jeremiah]

A new German study has found that about a third of society (35%) is indifferent to whether or not they are living meaningful lives.

According to the article:

Tatjana Schnell, a research psychologist at the University of Innsbruck in Austria, surveyed perceived meaningfulness in a modern population [of Germans].

Participants were surveyed using the SoMe scale, which measures people on a scale from those who believe they have a total lack of meaning in their lives to those who feel their lives are full of meaning, and breaks down individuals into four groups. Schnell categorizes people in this way:

• High meaningfulness, low crisis of meaning (meaningful)

• Low meaningfulness, low crisis of meaning (existentially indifferent)

• High meaningfulness, high crisis of meaning (conflicting)

• Low meaningfulness, high crisis of meaning (crisis of meaning)
​

The meaningfulness value is based upon one’s appraisal of life as “coherent, significant, directed, and belonging.” The crisis of meaning variable measures absence or presence of suffering drawn from meaninglessness.

Looking at a sample of 603 Germans, Schnell found that 61 percent were “meaningful,” 4 percent suffered a “crisis of meaning,” and 35 percent were “existentially indifferent,” those who “neither experience their lives as meaningful nor suffer from this lack of meaning.” So of the people who felt their lives lacked meaning, it really only bothered one in 10 of them.

The academics identified 26 “sources of meaning” in their study, and noted that the indifferent lacked sources like love, social commitment and unison of nature. They were especially low in self-knowledge, spirituality, explicit religiosity and generativity, even compared to those in a crisis.

Schnell stresses the low self-awareness among the apathetic. They do not face their own personal strengths and weaknesses because they are of little importance to them. Exceedingly little energy is invested in reflecting on themselves, their needs and motives.​

What do you make of this news?

"What do you make of this news?"

For a specie that supposedly has an inborn desire to seek out a "higher" meaning for life. I'd say for 35% to be “existentially indifferent” is an incredibly high percentage.