Abstract

What happens when women and men try to make life more meaningful? In the spring of 1990, 22 adults in southern Ontario attended one of three workshops designed to facilitate their efforts. The change process toward making life more meaningful and the role of the workshop in that process were examined. ;The findings of the study emphasized the usefulness of searching inwardly for one's own sources of meaning. Formulation of a clear and attainable vision increased the enhancement of meaning for the participants. Although the findings are limited to the group studied, they may be more broadly applicable and further testing would be valuable. ;Participants were in one or more of four stages identified by the researcher: information getting, adjusting, internalizing, and integrating. ;The following patterns were observed: Sometimes participants found meaning in what they experienced while at other times they found meaning from something that was yet to be attained. Some found it necessary to balance vulnerable sources of meaning such as work, learning, and humanity's future with other highly meaningful areas of their lives. Experience and knowledge were seen as ways to enhance meaning from nature and the universe. Fear and powerlessness associated with humanity's future kept some from finding meaning in that source. Participants set their own priorities regarding the sources from which they drew their meaning. ;Finally, the researcher offers recommendations to all those who are involved in guiding others in their quest for meaning and to those who are interested for their own sake