IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v19y2022i16p9948-d886372.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The Mediating Role of Positive Orientation in the Relationship between Loneliness and Meaning in Life

Author

Listed:
  • Dominik Borawski

    (Department of Psychology, Jan Kochanowski University, 25-029 Kielce, Poland)

Abstract

(1) Background: Previous research revealed that increased loneliness resulted in decreased meaning in life (MIL). Little is known, however, about the underlying mechanisms of this relationship. The aim of the study was to determine if the set of positive evaluations of oneself, one’s life, and one’s future discussed by Caprara as positive orientation (POS) was a mediator between loneliness and MIL. (2) Methods: A sample of 304 Polish participants aged 19–45 ( M = 25.61 years, SD = 6.1) completed the De Jong Gierveld Loneliness Scale, the Presence subscale of the Meaning in Life Questionnaire, and the Positivity Scale. (3) Results: The study showed that loneliness was negatively associated with POS and MIL, while POS and MIL were positively correlated with each other. It also turned out that POS partially mediated the relationship between loneliness and MIL. (4) Conclusions: The results suggest that, by inhibiting POS, loneliness makes it difficult to perceive life as meaningful. The interrelationships between loneliness, POS, and MIL are discussed in light of the evolutionary theory of loneliness.

Suggested Citation

  • Dominik Borawski, 2022. "The Mediating Role of Positive Orientation in the Relationship between Loneliness and Meaning in Life," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(16), pages 1-8, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:16:p:9948-:d:886372
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/16/9948/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/16/9948/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Young Mi Lim & Juha Baek & Sungmin Lee & Jung Sug Kim, 2022. "Association between Loneliness and Depression among Community-Dwelling Older Women Living Alone in South Korea: The Mediating Effects of Subjective Physical Health, Resilience, and Social Support," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(15), pages 1-13, July.
    2. Marko Sarstedt & Christian M. Ringle & Joseph F. Hair, 2022. "Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling," Springer Books, in: Christian Homburg & Martin Klarmann & Arnd Vomberg (ed.), Handbook of Market Research, pages 587-632, Springer.
    3. Wijnand A. P. Tilburg & Eric R. Igou, 2019. "Dreaming of a Brighter Future: Anticipating Happiness Instills Meaning in Life," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 20(2), pages 541-559, February.
    4. Piotr Oleś & Tomasz Jankowski, 2018. "Positive Orientation—a Common Base for Hedonistic and Eudemonistic Happiness?," Applied Research in Quality of Life, Springer;International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies, vol. 13(1), pages 105-117, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Dafna Kariv & Carlo Giglio & Vincenzo Corvello, 2025. "Fostering Entrepreneurial intentions: exploring the interplay of education and endogenous factors," International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal, Springer, vol. 21(1), pages 1-27, December.
    2. Jinjing Yang & Cong Cao & Chensang Ye & Yangyan Shi, 2022. "Effects of Interface Design and Live Atmosphere on Consumers’ Impulse-Buying Behaviour from the Perspective of Human–Computer Interaction," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(12), pages 1-21, June.
    3. Chaeyoung Lim & Jongchang Ahn, 2021. "Social Overload and Discontinuance Intention on Facebook: A Comparative Study," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(22), pages 1-17, November.
    4. Oliva M. D. Martins & Rocsana Bucea-Manea-Țoniș & Ana Sofia Coelho & Violeta-Elena Simion, 2022. "Sensory Perception Nudge: Insect-Based Food Consumer Behavior," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(18), pages 1-18, September.
    5. Pham Quang Huy & Vu Kien Phuc, 2023. "Big data in relation with business intelligence capabilities and e-commerce during COVID-19 pandemic in accountant’s perspective," Future Business Journal, Springer, vol. 9(1), pages 1-21, December.
    6. Soyoung An & Weolho Kim & Bongkoo Lee & Jungho Suh, 2022. "A Study on the Tourism-Related Information Consumption Process of Tourists on Social Networking Sites," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(7), pages 1-16, March.
    7. Qinqin Jiang & Zhe Zhao & Yijun Liu & Zhenbang Wei & Yan Bing & Feng Zhang & Jiahao Liu & Lei Gao & Jinhai Sun & Lei Yuan, 2024. "Decomposition analysis of the difference in depressive symptoms between urban and rural employed people in China: Unpaid work plays an important role," International Journal of Social Psychiatry, , vol. 70(2), pages 340-354, March.
    8. Michels, Marius & Bonke, Vanessa & Wever, Hendrik & Musshoff, Oliver, 2024. "Understanding farmers' intention to buy alternative fuel tractors in German agriculture applying the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 203(C).
    9. Mohammed Laeequddin & Waheed Kareem Abdul & Vinita Sahay & Aviral Kumar Tiwari, 2022. "Factors That Influence the Safe Disposal Behavior of E-Waste by Electronics Consumers," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(9), pages 1-16, April.
    10. Pham Quoc Thuan & Nguyen Vinh Khuong & Nguyen Duong Cam Anh & Nguyen Thi Xuan Hanh & Vo Huynh Anh Thi & Tieu Ngoc Bao Tram & Chu Gia Han, 2022. "The Determinants of the Usage of Accounting Information Systems toward Operational Efficiency in Industrial Revolution 4.0: Evidence from an Emerging Economy," Economies, MDPI, vol. 10(4), pages 1-19, April.
    11. Tai-Ming Wut & Stephanie-Wing Lee & Jing (Bill) Xu, 2022. "Role of Organizational Resilience and Psychological Resilience in the Workplace—Internal Stakeholder Perspective," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(18), pages 1-14, September.
    12. Yunyun Duan & Nurul Ain Mohd Hasan & Feroz De Costa & Sharifah Sofiah Syed Zainudin, 2024. "Case Study on Different Types of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Communication on Social Media and Brand Loyalty: The Mediating Role of Brand Identification in the Dairy Industry of China," Studies in Media and Communication, Redfame publishing, vol. 12(3), pages 151-167, September.
    13. Saari, Ulla A. & Damberg, Svenja & Frömbling, Lena & Ringle, Christian M., 2021. "Sustainable consumption behavior of Europeans: The influence of environmental knowledge and risk perception on environmental concern and behavioral intention," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 189(C).
    14. Muhammad Ali Aslam & Zhaolei Li, 2025. "A Sustainable Approach to Boost Resilience in Fast-Moving Consumer Goods: The Critical Role of Suppliers and Transportation Capacity Explored Through PLS-SEM and NCA," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(6), pages 1-29, March.
    15. Abdullah Kaid Al‐Swidi & Joseph F. Hair & Mohammed A. Al‐Hakimi, 2023. "Sustainable development‐oriented regulatory and competitive pressures to shift toward a circular economy: The role of environmental orientation and Industry 4.0 technologies," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(7), pages 4782-4797, November.
    16. Mwesiumo, Deodat & Halpern, Nigel & Bråthen, Svein & Budd, Thomas & Suau-Sanchez, Pere, 2023. "Perceived benefits as a driver and necessary condition for the willingness of air passengers to provide personal data for non-mandatory digital services at airports," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 171(C).
    17. Mst Asma Khatun & Yu Nakamura & Koji Kotani, 2021. "Mis(match) and happiness in marital relationship: Importance of future planning and inquisitiveness," Working Papers SDES-2021-7, Kochi University of Technology, School of Economics and Management, revised Jul 2021.
    18. Imran Hossain & Md. Nekmahmud & Maria Fekete-Farkas, 2022. "How Do Environmental Knowledge, Eco-Label Knowledge, and Green Trust Impact Consumers’ Pro-Environmental Behaviour for Energy-Efficient Household Appliances?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(11), pages 1-16, May.
    19. Andrea Bencsik & Dávid Máté Hargitai & Anastasia Kulachinskaya, 2022. "Trust in and Risk of Technology in Organizational Digitalization," Risks, MDPI, vol. 10(5), pages 1-19, April.
    20. Wagih Salama & Mohamed Nor El Deen & Azzam Albakhit & Karam Zaki, 2022. "Understanding the Connection between Sustainable Human Resource Management and the Hotel Business Outcomes: Evidence from the Green-Certified Hotels of Egypt," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(9), pages 1-22, May.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:16:p:9948-:d:886372. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.