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International Journal of Evaluation and Research in Education (IJERE)
Vol. 12, No. 4, December 2023, pp. 2011~2020
ISSN: 2252-8822, DOI: 10.11591/ijere.v12i4.25453 2011
Journal homepage: http://ijere.iaescore.com
Exploring the construct of meaning in life among the senior
undergraduate student
Farida Agus Setiawati1, Edi Purwanta2
1Department of Psychology, Faculty of Education and Psychology, Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta, Yogyakarta, Indonesia
2Department of Special Education, Faculty of Education and Psychology, Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta, Yogyakarta, Indonesia
Article Info
ABSTRACT
Article history:
Received Sep 13, 2022
Revised Aug 17, 2023
Accepted Sep 12, 2023
The meaning in life is a fundamental human behavior that plays an essential
role in self-development. The concept of meaning in life continues to focus
on researchers using various theoretical perspectives. This study explored
the construct of meaning in life from the vantage point of undergraduate
students in their final year. They were chosen by considering the severity of
the developmental tasks that must be completed during this time. By using
the mixed-method approach, the study found the concept of meaning in life
through the qualitative method. Some themes were related to the meaning of
life, namely: experiencing a number of important events, being devoted to
religion, learning from life, feeling positive emotions, benefiting others,
interacting socially, and caring for oneself. The study was followed by a
quantitative method through exploratory factor analysis and found that the
construct of the meaning in life consisted of three factors, namely: facing
difficult and severe situations, getting lessons from unpleasant situations,
and thinking flexibly when dealing with various situations. This
measurement model could be used in the development of meaning in life
theory. Practically, it becomes the reference in solving the life problems.
Keywords:
Exploring the construct
Meaning in life
Undergraduate student
This is an open access article under the CC BY-SA license.
Corresponding Author:
Farida Agus Setiawati
Department Psychology, Faculty of Education and Psychology, Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta
Karangmalang, Yogyakarta 55281, Indonesia
Email: farida_as@uny.ac.id
1. INTRODUCTION
In daily life, humans might face any event, either as a recurring event that occurred repetitively or as
an event that occurred immediately. The routine of the lives was many experiences associated with meaning
in life [1]. Those events can be passed through without leaving any impressions and experiences. Sometimes,
an event can make humans feel a deep impression or emotion–happy or sad emotion. Humans can learn a
valuable lesson from an experience of an event. How an individual can get a deep impression, emotion, and
lesson from the events he or she experiences will depend on how he or she gives meaning to those events.
The ability of an individual to interpret the events or how they relate to felt meaningfulness is called meaning
in life [2]. Meaning in life is also defined as cognizance about a person’s existence and goals, and this feeling
could be fulfilled [3].
For humans, meaning in life means a fundamental ability that can make them feel important and
valuable. This meaning can make humans different from one another. A similar event in a group of people
will be defined differently depending on how they interpret it. Meaning in life is an individually, constructed
by cognitive system each person [4], [5]. Meaning in life also gives humans a goal and orientation toward
their activities [6], [7]. It also can be a part of self-evaluation that later on can create an improvement in
behaviors and attitudes [3]. An individual that can have meaning in life can see any phenomena he or she is
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experiencing that later make the individual able to have an optimistic behavior or attitude in running the
future life [8]. Several studies showed that the meaning in life positively affects the development of psychical
characteristics in humans [2].
The concept of meaning in life was developed along with the development of positive psychology,
one of the schools in psychology that looks at individual behavior with a focus on positive behavior, i.e.,
excellent and fun behavior and meaningful life [9], [10]. In positive psychology, each individual is seen as
having the potential to develop what is in themselves through character strengths and not only focusing on
improving weaknesses. In the efforts to understand the human potential, there is a need for an attempt to
interpret any experiences positively. Individuals can have positive ways to interpret any stressors, including
making a goal or orientation for the future, learning from experiences, being optimistic, and developing
themselves or achievement [8], [11]. The meaning also associates with elevated psychological distress, such
as emotional problems, suicidal thoughts, and psychosomatic complaints [7], [12], [13].
One of the theories in humanistic psychology developing the concept of meaning in life is Viktor
Frankl, with a theory known as logotherapy [14]. Logotherapy has three fundamental principles. The first
principle states that life has a meaning from each condition; the second principle in the form of the main
strength in life is the desire to find out the meaning in life, and the last principle is to have the freedom to
decide an attitude in any changing situation [15]. Based on the principle, the theory of Victor is then known
as the ‘meaning triangle’, stating that the meaning in life consists of three aspects: creative, experience, and
attitude [16]. Creativity here means ideas or thoughts of humans to find out and give something valuable to
the surrounding environment. This attempt is made by expressing and creating something for the
environment. Any activities can give meaning in life related to creativity, such as working, art, music, or
writing. The experience related to how an individual accepts any information from the environment includes
the experience with nature, culture, social interaction, and spirituality. The attitude related to how an
individual faces any changes is related to how the individual selects an accurate response in any situations,
conditions as well as unpleasant situations.
Emotional expression also can show how an individual interprets his or her life [7], [16]. The joyful
and smiling facial expression illustrates his or her happy life. Happiness is related to how an individual
interprets his or her life though it is not prolonged. The reflected happiness shows that he or she can feel a
positive feeling. Someone that tends to be gloomy will show an individual how negatively or pessimistically
feels about his or her life. This life’s positive and negative feelings will determine someone’s meaning in life
[17], [18]. Similar to positive and negative feelings, the concept of meaning is related to many events in life.
Furthermore, Kim, Kang, and Choi [19] related the meaning in life with a pleasant situation; meanwhile,
Bellieni [20] related the meaning in life with an unpleasant experience that made someone cry to tears. The
meaning in life was associated with forgiving behavior in couples who love each other [21]. Forgiving
behavior often done by couples will increase the meaningfulness of their life.
The meaning in life is also related to the individual that experiences problems. Many individuals can
interpret their life as full of miseries and problems they must face. The research about the meaning in life of
an elderly scavenger found that the scavenger can interpret the meaning in life by accepting his condition,
being patient, grateful, and steadfast in feeling happiness in himself [22]. The meaning in life is also
frequently related to the suffering of people who are chronically ill [23]. The meaning in life is negatively
correlated to the chronic disease suffered. The higher the meaning in an individual's life, the lower the
interference of the disease suffered. Some individuals stay strong and can survive the chronic illness they
experience because they can interpret their illness as a test and a part of life that must be passed through.
However, some cannot accept their physical condition, consequently worsening their illness [24].
The meaning in life was constructed from two dimensions, they are presence of meaning and search
of meaning [7], [25], [26]. The first related to how the individual experiences can be understood by
themselves; it refers to “the degree to which people experience their lives as comprehensive and significant,
and feel a sense of purpose or mission in their lives that transcends the mundane concerns of daily life.” The
meaning concerns “the dynamic, active effort people expend trying to establish and augment their
comprehension of the meaning, significance, and purpose of their lives.” This instrument measurement was
developed from 10 items, and each dimension was represented from five items [27].
The meaning in life changes with age [25], [28]. Children, teenager, adolescence, and adult, will
have different meanings in their life experiences. The meaning in life is also related to the culture where they
live. There are differences in the meaning based on ethnicity [29]. Gender [30], [31] and crisis situations also
effect the meaning in life [28], [32]. Thus, the measurement of the meaning in life is indigenous and has a
uniqueness in each person’s place, age and circumstances the persons live in [33]. The meaning in life
impacts the student goal [7], improving the mindsets and lifestyles among university students [8], someone
who can interpret their environment would be more enthusiastic in life, and especially university students can
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make him or her more enthusiastic about learning and doing any academic tasks. Thus, it became optimized,
have the spirit to complete the study on time while staying to optimize the achievements.
University students are young intellectuals who are critical and creative [34]. The advantages of
these psychological characteristics of undergraduate students will affect a person's performance. Even the
students frequently become the drivers of change. However, the psychological characteristics related to the
idealism of these students are sometimes not in accordance with the conditions and abilities they own,
particularly for those in the final semester. Students must solve many problems in this period, especially in
academic, writing final assignments or thesis, careers, and social/friendship problems [35]. For them, this is a
period of transition to adulthood. The transition period is a period that is sometimes difficult for students to
feel, thus, affecting their well-being or happiness [35], [36].
Many undergraduate students successfully develop themselves and can face their problems, but
some have difficulty overcoming their problems [37], [38]. The final semester is more stressful than the first
semester [39]. One of the effects that can be seen is that many students complete their education in so long.
Then it also affects other aspects of life, such as experiencing psychological disorders, including being
distressed, emotionally disordered, and even depressed. The student’s stress level working on a thesis is high
[40]. However, many students have succeeded in solving problems they have experienced by being able to
interpret their lives and manage themselves. Meaning in life was associated with self-efficacy [41]–[43] and
coping with everyday stressors [44], [45].
The various studies showed that the meaning in life has a broad role in the psychic characteristics of
humans. Concepts built from the meaning in life are also various. From the previous explanation, the mindset
of how a person views various events faced, past experiences, and the severity of the problems being faced
also affects his or her view of the meaning in life [27]. Thus, the exploration of the meaning in life from
various perspectives needs to be studied further. Based on the background, it is essential to identify the
meaning of life for the final semester undergraduate students. The description of students interpreting their
life can be reduced to the concept of the meaning in life they have. Thus, this study aims to find the concept
of meaning in life and explore the concept to obtain a more substantial and quantitatively tested concept in
the form of constructs of the meaning in life among the final semester undergraduate students. Therefore, the
question of the research are: i) How the concept of meaning in life resulted from the theme of qualitative
research?; and ii) How the construct of meaning in life resulted from the quantitative research?
2. RESEARCH METHOD
This research used the mixed method approach or the mixed qualitative-quantitative approach.
Research question one was answered in study one, and the second was in study two. The qualitative approach
was conducted in study one to obtain any behavior indicators related to the meaning in the life of university
students. After obtaining the behavior indicators, it was continued with study two as further research to
obtain the concept of the meaning in life with a quantitative approach.
The first study involved 62 final-semester students willing to be the research informants. The
sampling was done using purposive sampling. The criteria of the sample of this research included the
students in the final semester and willing to be the research subject. The participant of the second study were
141 persons, and they had the same characteristic as the first study.
The qualitative research in the first study was conducted by giving an open question to the students:
“Mention a significant event that you have ever experienced and why this event is significant for you.” The
students were asked to give a written answer. Various answer patterns of research subjects were then
combined and described entirely. This study continued with the quantitative approach. It was to find out the
construct of the meaning in the life of the final semester students. The subject of this study had criteria
similar to the first study. The data collection was done by giving the instrument in the form of the scale of
meaning in life. The instrument was developed based on the results taken from the theme or indicator from
the result of the first study.
Data analysis was conducted by displaying the data, reducing, and making conclusions. Data
reduction in the first study from the answers to the open-ended questions was carried out based on the
similarity of the indicator to the informant's answer. The similarity of these was described as various
indicators, and the grouping indicator is the theme of the meaning in life. Several that are formed are
conclusions from the findings of the concept of the meaning in life qualitatively.
Quantitative analysis in the second study was carried out in item analysis, reliability, and construct
analysis. Questionnaire meaning in life was made from the result of the concept from the study of qualitative.
Item analysis is carried out to obtain items related to the total score, and reliability analysis is to observe the
internal consistency of the measuring instrument. Furthermore, exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was carried
out to determine the meaning in life construct, which was tested quantitatively. The factor analysis was used
to reduce the data. The reduction refers to a technique to simplify or summarize the data. This technique
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reduces various measurements and tests to make them simple. It is used to help identify the entire and
fundamental properties underlying the measurement. Data reduction is analyzed with the principal
component. The determination of the number of factors used criteria for an eigenvalue that was greater than
one and the number of items at a minimum factor of three [46].
3. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
3.1. The themes of meaning in life
The results of this research are explained from two studies. The results of the first study were done
based on the qualitative analysis by seeing the patterns of the response of the answer from the research
subjects. From any responses given, the writer did the coding based on the similarity of the content. The
coding results showed seven answer patterns that were grouped into seven themes. Those seven themes were
named by the similarities of the meaning obtained from the results of reducing the answers from the research
subjects. Those seven themes obtained were the concept of meaning in life based on the perspective of the
final semester students. Those themes as the indicator of the meaning in life from the results of the study are
presented in Table 1.
Table 1. Themes from the indicator of the meaning in life
Themes
Indicator
Theme 1: Experiencing the important events
Suffering pain because far from the family
Accompanying parents who were seriously ill
Participating in activities from campus organizations
Being a representative to join a historical tour
Feeling the income from own business
Joining and taking part in the dance cover competition
Going to many places that were never visited before
Creating fundraising activities dedicated to children with cancer
Theme 2: Learning from life
Meaning the fear of death experienced for several days
Successfully coping with the sadness
Taking the lessons from the negative behavior of other attitudes
Changing negative views and getting up from failure
Adapting to a new environment
Facing any challenging tasks
Facing various difficulties and succeeding
Theme 3: Feeling the positive emotion
Feeling calm and happy
Being motivated to get up
Getting warmth in the family
Feeling loved
Feeling valuable when getting achievements
Proud of being able to get the results of the hard work done
Theme 4: Devotion to religion
Realizing to be little in this world
Grateful to God
Learning religion in forum
Feeling peaceful in worship
Believing that the afterlife is much better than this world
Feeling close to God
Theme 5: Self-concern
Motivating to get up
Maintaining health
Defending the position of being a champion
A better understanding of who I am and who the people around me
Chasing the dreams
Theme 6: Having social interaction
Meeting new friends with different characters from various places
Having a good friend
Gathering with friends and family
Feeling needed by other people
Sharing experiences with other people
Theme 7: Giving benefits to other people
Helping other people
Feeling useful for other people
Helping others who are less fortunate
Giving help to others who are under privileged
The grouping results showed the variety of behavior indicators in interpreting the life grouped in
some themes in explaining the meaning in life. If analyzed further, of those seven themes, there were two
essential dimensions: how the participant was valuable in their life and felt the life meaningful. Related to
how the participant was valuable in life, the answer was in the second theme, when they can learn from life.
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While an individual was valuable in his or her life, the answers were when he or she experienced a particular
event, was devoted to religion, felt a positive emotion, gave self-concern, made a social interaction, and was
able to give some benefits to other people.
The exploration of the construct of meaning in life from qualitative research found various themes
related to the meaning in life, feeling an important event in life, learning from life, devotion to religion,
feeling a positive emotion, self-concern, giving the benefits for others, and making social interaction. The
results of this qualitative study indicated the meaning in life as seen from various perspectives. One
perspective was when an individual felt their life was meaningful. This concept is certainly different when
the meaning in life is seen from the perspective of how someone interprets their life. The themes related to
the findings of this research were by learning from life. Individuals who could learn from various events,
whether a pleasant or unpleasant situation, both from an important event he or she faced or events others
faced, could learn from various important events they experienced as well as religious activities, which
makes their life meaningful.
Important events in human life occur unavoidably and uncontrollably, whether they are pleasant or
unpleasant. Various essential events are experienced to give a person a different atmosphere that is unusually
experienced. The events of success, failure, pain, luck or misfortune, and various events that are unusually
experienced will be felt like something different. Thus, it will bring meaning in life itself in human life. The
experience of these various events is a process of interpreting human life [1].
Pleasant events are beautiful, so one can enjoy them and be happy. Many students are impressed by
the pleasant experience and feel happy that it can make the event something meaningful for them. Happiness
makes a person's life meaningful, and meaning life also makes someone happy [2]. Unpleasant events can
also become meaningful after successfully dealing with them with effort, hard work, and getting help from
God or the people nearby. An ability to interpret unpleasant events can be fun in the future. The various
feelings experienced give rise to individual diversity in the meaning in life.
Devotion to religion was one of the meaningful activities for the final semester students. It is one of
the individual efforts to get closer to God by conducting religious orders. For many people, this religious
activity will be felt as guidance when doing daily activities, coping with any problem, and life satisfaction
[47]. Spiritual condition is related to how students interpret their life [48], [49]. Some experiences felt
meaningful when doing religious service. For example, included participating in religious activities at
universities, carrying out religious worship both daily and incidentally, such as umrah, feeling a little weak,
having many shortcomings leading people to be dependent upon God, getting peace of mind, closeness to
God, happiness when getting closer to God, and being grateful for various events experienced. So, it can be
concluded the belief related to the meaning in life [50], [51].
Self-concern is part of the way university students interpret life. Various efforts have been made to
understand oneself, manage various conditions experienced to efforts for self-improvement, try to achieve
desires, and achieve achievement is part of life's meaning. It is not only psychological or physical concern in
the form of exercise, and health is also a form of self-concern. Student life cannot be apart from other people.
Social interaction with other people is a form of activity that can also give specific meaning. This related to
the social support. Several studies show that social support is related to the meaning of life [50], [52], [53].
Various activities with friends intensely and occasionally become a daily experience. It is similar to the
interaction with family. Students who wander will feel the burden of living away from family more; thus,
they can understand how meaningful the presence of family is [54]. Interacting with many people can raise
awareness that many people are experiencing a condition far less fortunate than what they experience. One of
the effects is being more grateful for their condition and giving something that can be done for others. When
students can give something to others, they will feel more valuable, making them feel helpful to others.
The first study’s results showed several important themes that could be reduced qualitatively to the
meaning in life. Based on the result, several indicators of life's meaning could be differentiated into two
forms. The meaning in life is related to the behavior, as shown by the effects of people with a meaningful life
(reflective indicator) and the behavior related to the cause of people with a meaningful life (formative
indicator). Reflectively, it is related to any individual learning from the experiences that emerged when an
individual feels that his or her life was meaningful. Meanwhile, formatively relates to the sources affecting an
individual's meaningful life. Based on the results of the concept of meaning in life, reflectively, a research
instrument of meaning in life was made to construct meaning quantitatively. The items were formed from the
themes of behavior related to learning from life. All items were 32 statements that must be responded
(1=very not appropriate, 2=not appropriate, 3=neutral, 4=appropriate, and 5=very appropriate).
3.2. The construct of meaning in life
The quantitative research aimed to find out the construct of meaning in life among the final semester
undergraduate students and to describe the characteristics of meaning in the students’ life based on the
construct obtained. The phase done to obtain the construct of the meaning in life was by doing the item
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analysis and factor analysis. Item analysis was used to seek the property item from correlated the items to the
total score. Item selection was conducted with the Pearson formula by correlating the item score with the
total scores that have been subtracted from the item scores. Based on the index of minimum correlation of
0.2, there were 25 valid items and eight items with a correlation coefficient below 0.2. Thus, in the following
analysis, items were removed; in this case, items number 1, 2, 3, 5, 10, 16, 27, and 32.
Reliability is one of the characteristics of a measuring instrument showing the instrument's accuracy
in doing the measurement function. An accurate instrument is an instrument that measures precisely with
minimum measurement errors. The reliability of this study was analyzed using the alpha formula from
Cronbach (α) and the results α=0.854. It indicated that the score of the result of measuring instrument was
very reliable (α>0.8) thus, the measurement results could be trusted.
Construct exploration of meaning in life was done using the confirmatory factor analysis. It was
done to find out the construct based on the items. The factor analysis was initiated by seeing the correlation
matrix among the variables or items. If the number of correlations in this matrix was relatively high (>0.3),
then the completion of factor analysis was continued on factor extraction. The high correlation between these
variables can be seen from the anti-image in the correlation matrix. A low anti-image indicated a low
correlation, which resulted in insufficiency, and did the factor analysis. This factor analysis's sufficiency was
seen in the Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) test results. If KMO >0.5, it could be stated that there were sufficient
samples; thus, the factor reduction could be conducted. In addition to the KMO test, Bartlett’s Test of
Sphericity could be used. If the probability alpha (Sig.) <0.05, the factor analysis could be continued. The
analysis results showed that the KMO was 0.754, and the significance of Bartlett’s Test of Sphericity was
0.000. KMO more than 0.5 and the significance of Bartlett's test of sphericity less than 0.05 indicated that
factor analysis could be performed.
The results of factor analysis showed seven factors with an eigenvalue above one. From the seven
components with an eigenvalue of more than one, there were four factors with number of items fewer than
three, so that cannot become the one factor. Thus, three factors or dimensions were obtained by this
measuring instrument analyzed. The number of variants described from the three factors was 43.887%. The
factor loading before being rotated, respectively, from the first factor, was 21.72%, 15.375%, and 6.793%.
Meanwhile, after being rotated, each factor’s loading was 18.367%, 15.279%, and 10.241%, respectively.
Table 2 presents the factor loading for each item.
Table 2. Factor loading for each the items in each dimension after being rotated
No items
Component
1
2
3
4
0.54
6
0.544
7
0.773
8
0.721
9
0.685
11
0.564
12
0.812
13
0.633
14
0.524
15
17
0.743
18
0.771
19
0.408
20
0.654
21
0.716
22
0.628
23
0.55
24
0.486
25
0.629
26
0.431
28
0.698
29
0.656
31
0.556
32
0.498
Eigen value
% variant
5.213
18.367%
3.69
15.279%
1.63
10.241%
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Once obtaining the factor loading in each item, the maximum factor loading of the three factors
formed was sought. Each item had a one-factor loading based on the maximum factor loading. After each
item had the factor loading, the final step in the factor analysis was to group the items into similar factors and
give a name to the factors formed. The name was given based on the similarity of the content of the
statements of the grouped items. There are several set of items that have been grouped along with the names
of the factors. The first factor was a behavior related to the ability to face difficult situations as seen from the
unfavorable items, i.e., the high response in the items showing the individuals that tended to be failed in
facing the difficult situation. The second factor also dealt with an ability to cope with any difficult situations,
but it was seen from the favorable items. High responses on these items were related to the behavior of
individuals who learned lessons from unpleasant situations. The third factor was related to the flexibility of
thinking in various situations. High response in this factor showed individuals who could think from various
points of view in interpreting their life so that they had the ease of adapting to various situations.
The second study obtained the construct meaning in life from how an individual interpreted his or
her life, how to learn from life. The results of quantitative research succeeded in finding a construct of
meaning in life consisting of three factors, and the term factor is referred to as dimension. The first factor was
meaning in life in terms of an ability to deal with any problematic situations. This component consisted of
unfavorable items, including difficulty interpreting difficult situations, sadness, burden, fear of new situations,
difficulty in accepting any input, and criticism. Because it was based on unfavorable items, students who
scored high on these items included those who failed to interpret their life, especially in a difficult life. At the
same time, the low scores on these items were the students who were able to interpret many difficulties in
their life.
The second factor is the ability to deal with difficult situations, as seen from the favorable items.
These results were in line with the previous studies stated that the items favorable and unfavorable are
difficult to unite one construct or dimension. However, the factor analysis result was grouped into two from
one construct [55]–[57]. So, the high responses on these items were related to the behavior of individuals
who learned lessons from unpleasant situations. Statements related to this factor included being able to see
the benefits behind the calamity, the ability to cope with any difficulties in doing the heavy and challenging
tasks, the ability to solve any solutions to problems, the ability to improve themselves, and success in facing
failure and taking advantage of challenges. This is relevant to the self-regulation learning that facilitated the
meaning in life [57].
The third factor is the ability to interpret life, which is related to flexibility in thinking in dealing
with various situations. Several statements related to this factor included the ability to interact in a new
situation, do various activities that are difficult for others to do, and prefer busyness to a relaxed atmosphere.
High response in this factor showed that the individuals who could think from various points of view in
interpreting their lives had ease of adapting to various situations. Various experiences experienced by a
person in overcoming the problems experienced make a person’s way of thinking more flexible. Flexible
students would be able to manage themselves better and be eager to solve challenging situations [7].
Various incidents experienced by university students require an appropriate response. Any various
events not in line with expectations are certainly experienced by everyone, including the final semester
students. When having difficulty completing a final project, a student will feel negative and unpleasant
emotions. How students interpret the difficulties experienced is one way of interpreting their life that enables
them to solve problems. Many failed people can overcome the problems they are experiencing. This failure is
undoubtedly felt by individuals who are less able to interpret the difficulties or problems they are
experiencing. This condition becomes a specific indicator separate from the indicator for individuals who
have successfully overcome the difficulties experienced. When a final semester undergraduate student cannot
interpret the difficulties he or she feels when compiling the final project, he or she will interpret himself as
incapable, failed, and less fortunate. However, students who can interpret the difficulties they experience, for
example, because they feel unable to read foreign literature, will try to overcome them. They will succeed in
overcoming their problems, and it can take them to be happy. This is in line with Frankl's opinion stating that
a person's attitude is related to his or her ability to deal with various changes he or she faces [14]. It is also
related to how an individual chooses the correct response to unpleasant situations, conditions, and situations
and used by people as a part of their meaning system to cope with life's difficulties and challenges [49].
4. CONCLUSION
This research concludes that various component among the final semester student is related to the
meaning in life until to get the meaning in life construct that has been tested quantitatively. Several
components related to the meaning in life included learning from life, feeling positive emotion, devotion to
religion, self-concern, interacting socially, and benefiting others. While the construct built from quantitative
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research was an ability to face any difficult situations, learn the lessons from an unpleasant situation, and the
flexibility of thinking when faced with various situations.
The implications of the results of this study are explained theoretically and practically.
Theoretically, this research gets the construct of meaning in life for final-semester undergraduate students.
This study's themes and dimensions of the meaning in life can be a reference for subsequent analyses,
especially in developing theories and measurement instruments for the next research. The limitation of this
research is that the sample focuses on the final undergraduate student. Further studies can replace the subjects
with different characteristics, such as early semester undergraduate students, overseas students, teens, early
adults, parents, and teachers. The other limitation of the resulting study was that the variance extracted from
the measurement model of the meaning in life instrument was 43.887%. It is no more than 50%. So, the
development of this instrument is essential to construct meaning in life entirely and more valid.
Practically, the results of this study can be used as a reference in interpreting the problem, especially
for final-semester undergraduate students, such as finishing the thesis. The complicated experienced are
difficult situations to solve. Still, it is a critical moment to be interpreted positively. One will be a success
when he can mean this situation positively. It will be a memorable experience and help individuals solve
more severe problems and learn to succeed.
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BIOGRAPHIES OF AUTHORS
Farida Agus Setiawati is lecturer in Department Psychology, Faculty of
Education and Psychology, Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta, Indonesia. She was born in
Pekalongan on August 13, 1972. She studied undergraduate students in the Department
Psychology and Mastery Program in Psychometric Universitas Gadjah Mada and doctoral
program in Educational Research and Evaluation, Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta. She can be
contacted at email: farida_as@uny.ac.id.
Edi Purwanta was born in Klaten on Nopember 5, 1960. He studied
undergraduate students in guidance and counseling in IKIP Yogyakarta, Indonesia (1983). He
studied mastery and doctoral in the same program, passed in 1993 and 2011. He is professor
and lecturer in department Special Educational, Faculty of Education and Psychology,
Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta, Indonesia. He can be contacted at email:
edi_purwanta@uny.ac.id.
