This innovative book addresses the need for significance and mattering as a universal human motivation. It examines the impact of significance and mattering, considering how they manifest across our lifespan and in different parts of our lives.

Table of ContentsList of ContributorsList of FiguresList of TablesPart 1: Introduction1 The Supreme Human Quest- Arie W. Kruglanski, Isaac Prilleltensky, and Amiram RavivPart 2: Significance and Mattering Across the Lifespan 2 Mattering in Childhood: A Developmental Attachment Perspective- Jessica A. Stern and Jude Cassidy3 Mattering, Self-Esteem, and First-Generation College Students- Gregory C. Elliott, Emily J. Siff, and Jardelle Johnson4 An Attachment Perspective on the Quest for Significance And Mattering- Mario Mikulincer and Phillip R. Shaver5 Significance And Mattering in Late Adulthood- Jessie Dezutter and Laura Dewitte6 A Terror Management Theory Perspective on the Human Needs For Self-Esteem, Meaning, Close Relationships, and Significance- Tom Pyszcynski and Jonathan MorganPart 3: Significance And Mattering Across Life Domains 7 The Quest For Significance and Mattering in Education- Maurice J. Elias, Danielle R. Hatchimonji, Samuel J. Nayman, and Arielle C.V. Linsky8 Mattering and Work- David L. Blustein, Camille M. Smith, Karley Guterres, and Brenda Tsai9 Communities: Sites, Sources, and Subjects of Significance- Michael P. ScarpaPart 4: Significance and Mattering Across Societies and Cultures 10 Making “Us” Matter: Social Identity, Leadership, and Collective Agency- Katherine J. Reynolds, Emina Subašić, Benjamin Jones, and Haochen Zhou11 Gender, Significance, and Mattering- Amanda B. Diekman, Andrew D. White, and Samantha L. Heiman12 “Good Trouble”: Nonviolent Activism and the Quest for Psychological Significance in a Racialized Society- Angela P. Cole-Dixon and Cynthia E. Winston-Proctor13 Significance Quest and International Relations: On the Psychology of Foreign Affairs- Markéta Kocmanová, Karl Kaltenthaler, and Arie W. Kruglanski14 Love, Motivated: Partner Merit And Appreciation as Sources of Significance- Molly Ellenberg, Arie W. Kruglanski, Ewa Szumowska, and Huixian Yu15 Significance: The Missing Link Between Frustration and Aggression- Molly Ellenberg, Arie W. Kruglanski and Brad J. Bushman16 Mattering as Citizens: Conditions- Isaac Prilleltensky, Michael P. Scarpa, Salvatore Di Martino, Dina von Heimburg, and Ottar Ness17 Mattering as Citizens: Correlates and Consequences- Michael P. Scarpa, Salvatore Di Martino, Dina von Heimburg, Ottar Ness, and Isaac Prilleltensky18 Gaining and Maintaining Significance: The Role of Group Membership- John M. Levine and Dominic Abrams19 Significance and Mattering in Migration- David Webber, Erica Molinario, Katarzyna Jasko, and Arie W. Kruglanski20 Down The Yellow Brick Road: How Socialization Through Early Narratives Shapes the Quest for Significance- Sophia MoscalenkoPart 5: Significance and Mattering in Mental Health 21 Self-Worth in Mental Health: At the Intersection of Mattering and Significance- Melissa Hagan, Brianna Hernandez, and Abigail W. Batchelder 22 Conservation of Resources Theory and Traumatic Stress Placed in the Context of Meaning Making: An Evolutionary Ecological Perspective- Steve Hobfoll and Wai Kai Hou23 The Narcissism Spectrum Through the Prism of Significance-Quest Theory- Amiram Raviv, Ami Sha'ked, and Darya Maoz24 Feelings of Not Mattering Among Lonely People: Is the Loneliness Epidemic Due to an Epidemic of Feeling Insignificant? - Gordon L. Flett, Alison L. Rose, and Joel O. Goldberg25 Conclusion: Lessons Learned and Practical Applications- Isaac Prilleltensky, Amiram Raviv, and Arie W. Kruglanski