The Scale for Existential Thinking

Authors

Blake A. Allan, University of Florida
Branton Shearer, Multiple Intelligence Research and Consulting, Inc.

DOI

10.24972/ijts.2012.31.1.21

Abstract

This study introduced the construct of existential thinking, which we defined as the tendency

to explore the fundamental concerns of human existence and the capacity to engage in a

meaning-making process that locates oneself in respect to these issues. We also assessed

the psychometric properties of the 11-item “Scale for Existential Thinking” (SET). In two

studies, we found the SET to have unidimensional factor structure and good reliability

diagnostics in both student and adult samples. Moreover, the SET showed construct validity

by correlating with meaning in life, curiosity, and other existential variables. Furthermore,

we found meaning in life to mediate the relation of existential thinking and existential wellbeing,

which supports our conceptualization of existential thinking as a meaning-making

process.

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.

Recommended Citation

Allan, B. A., & Shearer, B. (2012). Allan, B. A., & Shearer, C. B. (2012). The scale for existential thinking. International Journal of Transpersonal Studies, 31(1), 21–37.. International Journal of Transpersonal Studies, 31 (1). https://doi.org/10.24972/ijts.2012.31.1.21