Abstract
In psychology, a number of studies have examined ideas of the meaning of life, but no comprehensive model has been
developed that integrates philosophical foundations and empirical research. This study constructed an integral model
for concepts of the meaning of life using a model construction methodology based on qualitative data. Three models
were constructed: Framework (Model I), Element (Model II), and Composition (Model III). Model I was a theoretical
framework model based on philosophical, anthropological, and psychological theories. Model II was constructed
using categorization data on the meaning of life drawn from various sources in previous studies. Model III was
constructed by integrating Models I and II. These models proposed four fundamental principles underlying concepts
of the meaning of life: Personal, Relational, Social/universal, and Religious/spiritual. These principles formed a
"nested" structure that unfolds from Personal to Relational to Social/universal to Religious/spiritual. In addition,
some typical cases were analyzed by assessing structural properties of meaning systems. The model may provide a
comprehensive framework for understanding concepts such as "depth" and "breadth" as associated with concepts of the
meaning of life.
