Purpose development among Finnish adolescents

Abstract

This study investigates the development of Finnish adolescents’ perceptions of their life purposes and is based on a concept where purpose is understood as a long-term intention to accomplish something significant to the self while contributing to society. We follow 73 adolescents’ responses to online surveys in 2020 (N = 843) and 2022 (n = 73). At both timepoints, four purpose profiles were identified: Purposeful, Self-oriented, Dreamer, and Disengaged. Within two years, participants’ wish to contribute to the world had increased, with changes towards the Purposeful profile related to higher parental education and towards the Dreamer to female gender. Adolescents’ written responses showed at both timepoints that most of the written life purposes included a quest for happiness, development, and a career. Triangulation of the quantitative and qualitative data indicated similarities in purpose development, suggesting that the beyond-the-self orientation manifests later in adolescence.