Research in what may be termed the

Research in what may be termed the taxonomy of meaning has
tried to pinpoint the domains or types of goals that provide
meaning and authenticity in life. Although people tend to specify
a large number of such goals, different accounts (Emmons,
1999; Little, 1998; Prager, Savaya, & Bar-tur, 2000; Wong &
Fry, 1998) using a variety of samples, cultures, and age groups,
as well as diverse methodologies (e.g., semiprojective sentence
completion task, Q-sort items, and narrative methodology), settled
on four major life meaning categories: achievements/work,
relationships/intimacy, religion/spirituality, and self-transcendence/
generativity. These are the central categories that accord
individuals with a sense of purpose and meaningfulness. Two
of them, achievements/work and relationships/intimacy,
clearly reflect the domains of work and love, respectively. The
achievement/work category includes commitment to one’s
work, believing in its worth, and liking challenge as part of
it. The relationships/intimacy category includes relating well
to close others, trusting them, having intimate connections with
them, and being altruistic and helpful with them. Hence, we
further contend that for a large number of emerging adults, the
somewhat new developmental task of finding a meaningful life
is played out in the classic life domains of love and work,
although it is not limited to these. We suggest that a central
motivation for exploring different paths in work and love in
emerging adulthood is rooted in an inherent human need to find
meaning and purpose in life and to live meaningful lives with
eudemonic well-being.
Despite the renewal of meaning-related research, scant
attention has been given to the concept of searching for life
meaning in emerging adulthood (but see Scharf & Mayseless,
2010). Only little research examined emerging adults querying
the meaning and purpose of their work (Ardichvili, &
Kuchinke, 2009; Chalofsky, 2003). The idea of work fulfilling
a ‘‘psychological need’’ can be found in Maslow (1970) and
others (Herzberg et al., 1993; McClelland, 1965) who recognized
that individuals who do not perceive their work as meaningful
and purposeful for their lives will not work up to their
full professional capacity. Similarly, Frankl (1963), who saw
work as one of the sources through which people can find
meaning in their lives, believed that work which provides
objectives and their completion can result in deep satisfaction
and a sense of value. Without work, Frankl believes, people can
easily fall into an aimless existence.