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Measuring the unmeasurable: Psychometric tools for Existential Concerns

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ES

Evgeny Smirnov

15 papers · 2 Must Read · 2004–2026

Last updated Feb 12, 2026

Sorted by publication date, newest first. New papers are marked so you can spot recent additions.

Introduction

Key psychometric instruments for measuring existential concerns: meaning in life, existential isolation, and existential anxiety.

1
Niche
intermediate

Existential Isolation as a Barrier to Veteran Employment Satisfaction: Implications for Workplace Reintegration

CALEB BLANCHARD · 2026

At a GlanceAI

Longitudinal test of whether workplace “I-sharing” reduces veterans’ existential isolation and improves well-being and job satisfaction.

SummaryAI

Veterans often feel misunderstood in civilian workplaces, and the abstract frames this as existential isolation—feeling that others do not share or grasp one’s lived experience. The study proposes a practical reintegration lever: prompting veterans to reflect weekly on “I-sharing” moments with coworkers to reduce existential isolation. By tracking mental well-being and workplace satisfaction over six weeks plus 3- and 6-month follow-ups, it aims to show whether changing day-to-day subjective connection at work can improve longer-term adjustment. If supported, the work suggests workplace-based, low-cost interventions could target an existential barrier that undermines both personal and professional relationships.

I-Sharing, not exactly existential isolation

— ES

Method:AI
A longitudinal writing-intervention study with weekly prompts (I-sharing vs neutral) and repeated survey assessments including follow-ups.
Background:AI
Basic existential psychology (existential isolation, meaning/connection) and applied workplace/organizational psychology concepts.
2
Worth Reading
intermediate

Sensing a rift in reality: Validation of the self-world existential isolation scale

Roger Young, Kenneth E. Vail, Peter Helm et al. · 2026

At a GlanceAI

Validates a scale measuring self–world existential isolation, capturing a perceived rift between one’s inner experience and shared reality.

SummaryAI

The paper introduces and validates the Self–World Existential Isolation Scale, aimed at assessing the feeling that one’s subjective experience is fundamentally disconnected from others and the broader world. By operationalizing this “rift in reality,” it helps distinguish existential isolation from more familiar forms of social isolation or loneliness. The scale offers researchers a dedicated tool to study how this specifically existential disconnection relates to well-being and other psychological outcomes. It also supports clearer measurement in existential psychology by refining how existential isolation is defined and quantified.

At last, something really close to the concept of existential isolation

— ES

Method:AI
Scale development and psychometric validation of a questionnaire measure.
Background:AI
Basic existential psychology concepts (existential isolation vs loneliness) and foundational psychometrics.
3
Worth Reading
intermediate

Validating the Existential Quest Scale using item response theory(pdf)

Marco Rizzo, Giorgia Molinengo, Barbara Loera et al. · 2026

At a GlanceAI

Rasch IRT validation shows the Existential Quest Scale is unidimensional, invariant across groups, and offers item-level guidance for improvement.

SummaryAI

The study strengthens measurement of “existential quest”—openness to engaging existential questions in religious or secular contexts—by moving beyond classical test theory to item response theory. Using Rasch modeling in a large heterogeneous sample, it finds the EQS is unidimensional, discriminates levels of existential quest, and is measurement-invariant across sex, age, and religious affiliation, supporting fair comparison across groups. The analyses also flag specific item/response category issues and propose revisions, improving the tool’s precision for research on psychological flexibility, identity development, and social attitudes in multicultural settings.

Method:AI
Rasch (item response theory) modeling was used to test dimensionality, item functioning, and measurement invariance in a large survey sample.
Background:AI
Basic psychometrics (reliability/validity) plus familiarity with existential concerns and questionnaire measurement (CTT vs IRT/Rasch).
4
Skip
intermediate

Trauma, existential isolation, and their associated clinical outcomes

Tatum Loso, Rachel M. Gehman, Elizabeth C. Pinel et al. · 2025

At a GlanceAI

Across two large samples, existential isolation links cumulative trauma exposure to distress and suicidal ideation beyond loneliness.

SummaryAI

Across two studies, the authors test whether cumulative trauma is associated with existential isolation—feeling alone in one’s experience of reality—and whether this helps explain later psychological distress. In both undergraduate and adult samples, more trauma exposure related to higher existential isolation even when controlling for loneliness. Existential isolation statistically mediated the association between trauma and depression, anxiety, stress, and suicidal ideation, and this held for both interpersonal and non-interpersonal traumas. The work positions existential isolation as a clinically relevant target for trauma-focused assessment and intervention, not just social disconnection.

Samples are students and Amazon Turk...

— ES

Method:AI
Two cross-sectional survey studies using self-report measures and mediation analyses to test trauma–existential isolation–outcome pathways.
Background:AI
Basic understanding of trauma psychology, existential isolation/loneliness constructs, and correlational mediation models.
5
Niche
intermediate

Meaning in Life Questionnaire: Validation for Chinese Adolescents(pdf)

Xiang Zhao, Gareth Davey, Xiangxing Wan · 2025

At a GlanceAI

Validates the Meaning in Life Questionnaire for Chinese adolescents, confirming its two-factor structure but flagging issues in two items.

SummaryAI

The study strengthens evidence that the Meaning in Life Questionnaire (MLQ) can be used to assess meaning in life among Chinese adolescents, a group with previously limited methodological validation. Using a large, provincially representative school sample, it confirms the MLQ’s two-factor structure (Presence and Search) and supports overall reliability. At the same time, item-level response patterns raise concerns about the final two items, implying they may function differently and merit closer scrutiny (e.g., subgroup-specific interpretation). The findings support broader research and clinical use of the MLQ in Chinese youth while highlighting where measurement refinement may be needed.

Method:AI
Psychometric validation using confirmatory factor analysis and reliability/item-level analyses in a large adolescent school sample.
Background:AI
Basic psychometrics (factor structure, reliability) and existential psychology concepts around meaning in life (Presence vs Search).
6
Niche
intermediate

Propiedades psicométricas del Meaning in Life Questionnaire en personas diagnosticadas con Trastorno Límite de la Personalidad(pdf)

Joaquín García‐Alandete, Sandra Pérez, Fátima Lorca-Alamar et al. · 2025

At a GlanceAI

Validates the MLQ’s Presence/Search structure and reliability for assessing meaning in life in people with borderline personality disorder.

SummaryAI

The study tests whether the Meaning in Life Questionnaire (MLQ) works well in a clinical group diagnosed with borderline personality disorder (BPD). In a Spanish sample, the MLQ’s two-factor structure (Presence and Search) showed strong model fit and adequate internal consistency, supporting its use with BPD patients. Presence of Meaning related positively to purpose in life and negatively to dissociative experiences, linking existential meaning to clinically relevant outcomes. These results support incorporating meaning-focused assessment and interventions to reduce existential distress and support coping in BPD treatment.

Method:AI
Psychometric validation using self-report scales with factor-model testing and correlational analyses in a clinical BPD sample.
Background:AI
Basic knowledge of existential psychology (meaning/purpose) and fundamentals of psychological measurement (reliability, factor structure, validity).
7
Worth Reading
intermediate

The occupational meaning in life questionnaire: development, reliability, and validity

Jun Cai, Xinqiang Wang, Shinong Pan · 2025

At a GlanceAI

Introduces and validates a questionnaire to assess how people find meaning in life through their occupational roles and work life.

SummaryAI

The authors develop the Occupational Meaning in Life Questionnaire and report evidence for its reliability and validity. The work is important because it offers a work-focused tool for studying a core existential construct—meaning in life—within occupational settings. By operationalizing “meaning in life” specifically in relation to one’s occupation, it supports research and practice on how work contributes to existential fulfillment and well-being.

Method:AI
Scale development and psychometric validation of a new questionnaire (reliability and validity testing).
Background:AI
Basic existential psychology of meaning in life plus familiarity with psychological measurement and psychometrics.
8
Must Read
intermediate

Existential Concerns Arising From a Threat to the Belief in a Just World: A Mixed-Methods Study(pdf)

Evgeny Smirnov, Maria Makarova · 2025 · Journal of Humanistic Psychology

At a GlanceAI

Threats to belief in a just world are linked to higher existential anxiety, shown via interviews and survey comparisons in Russians.

SummaryAI

This study connects threats to belief in a just world with heightened existential concerns, framing injustice experiences as triggers of existential anxiety. Using in-depth interviews with people who perceived events as unjust, the authors identify themes of existential problems becoming salient after such experiences. A follow-up quantitative comparison across groups with different coping strategies for critical events finds higher existential anxiety among those facing threats to their just-world belief, with medium-to-large group differences. The work positions just-world threat as a psychologically meaningful pathway to existential distress, relevant for research and practice on coping with injustice.

Many people believe that the existential concerns are givens of the existence. However, it could be the case that they are triggered by other fundamental beliefs, such as a belief in a just world.

— ES

Method:AI
Mixed-methods design combining qualitative in-depth interviews with a quantitative survey using standardized scales.
Background:AI
Basic knowledge of belief in a just world, existential anxiety/concerns, and mixed-methods research in psychology.
9
Niche
intermediate

The Associations Among Existential Isolation, Shared Reality, and Veterans’ Health

Karla Fuentes Maldonado · 2025

At a GlanceAI

Shared reality in close relationships predicts less existential isolation and better veteran mental and physical health, beyond loneliness.

SummaryAI

The study highlights existential isolation—feeling fundamentally misunderstood—as a distinct risk factor for veterans’ distress and poorer health. In a survey of 464 U.S. veterans, greater generalized shared reality in close relationships was linked to lower existential isolation and better outcomes, including less depression and better physical well-being. Mediation analyses suggest existential isolation partly explains how shared reality relates to depression and physical health even when accounting for loneliness. The findings point to shared-reality-building relationship and reintegration supports as promising intervention targets for veteran well-being.

Method:AI
Cross-sectional survey of U.S. veterans using self-report measures with mediation analyses controlling for loneliness.
Background:AI
Basic knowledge of existential isolation, loneliness/social connection, and common mental health outcomes in veterans (PTSD, depression, anxiety).
12
Niche
intermediate

Death Anxiety Handbook: Research, Instrumentation, And Application(pdf)

Edited By Robert A. Neimeyer · 2015 · Taylor & Francis

At a GlanceAI

Handbook synthesizing theory and validated instruments for assessing death anxiety, threat, and attitudes, with guidance for research and practice.

SummaryAI

This edited volume matters because it addresses a chronic problem in death-anxiety research: heavy use of convenient but psychometrically weak measures and weak theory-to-measure fit. It consolidates six of the most used and best-validated tools (with scoring keys) and critically reviews their reliability, validity, dimensionality, and appropriate applications. Beyond measurement, it links major philosophical/psychological theories to testable research directions and illustrates applied uses in settings like nursing homes, psychotherapy, HIV care, near-death experiences, and death education. The implication is a more cumulative, comparable literature—where investigators choose measures based on constructs and populations, not just face validity or a single alpha value.

A really nice collection of the instruments of how to assess death atittudes or anxiety

— ES

Method:
Mostly empirical, though there are some theoretical considerations.
Background:
death studies; background in psychological measurement/psychometrics and basic thanatology/clinical or health psychology concepts
13
Worth Reading
intermediate

Flexibility in Existential Beliefs and Worldviews

Matthieu Van Pachterbeke, Johannes Keller, Vassilis Saroglou · 2012 · Journal of Individual Differences

At a Glance

Introduces a 9-item scale for "existential quest," measuring flexibility in existential beliefs beyond religiosity.

SummaryAI

The paper proposes "existential quest" (EQ) as a distinct tendency to question and revise one's existential beliefs and worldviews, regardless of whether one is religious. Across five studies in Belgium and Germany, the authors develop and validate a brief 9-item EQ scale and show it is not reducible to religious quest, search for meaning, dogmatism, or need for closure. EQ consistently relates to lower authoritarianism and cognitive rigidity and to higher empathy/altruism, and it predicts less "myside bias" in argument generation even when controlling for adjacent constructs. This provides researchers in existential, social, and personality psychology a compact tool to study open-mindedness specifically about existential worldviews, with implications for understanding ideological rigidity and perspective-taking.

The classical Religious quest scale has a limitation: it works only with religious people. EQ resolves this problem, following a similar design of the questions and sharing a similar idea.

— ES

Method:AI
Psychometric scale development and validation across multiple samples using correlational, behavioral-task, factor-analytic, and IRT analyses.
Background:
Basic knowledge of personality/social psychology measurement (psychometrics, individual differences, and construct validity) + Religious Quest Scale + Basic knowledge of existential psychology
14
Must Read
beginner

The meaning in life questionnaire: Assessing the presence of and search for meaning in life.

Michael F. Steger, Patricia Frazier, Shigehiro Oishi et al. · 2006 · Journal of Counseling Psychology

At a Glance

New questionnaire MLQ to measure meaning in life through Presence and Search domains

Summary

The authors created Meaning in Life Questionnaire in a positive context (Frankl's construction of meaning concept). The scale has 2 subscales (Presence and Search), 5 questions each. The tool is heavily used by other researchers and has many adaptations to different languages. Worth using if one needs to assess meaning in life or existential concern of meaninglessness.

A nice replacement of the old PIL scale that can assess the existential concern of meaninglessness, though some questions have arguable discriminant validity. To use!

— ES

Method:
creating and validating a new scale
Background:
basic existential notions (meaning in life); Frankl + Yalom
15
Worth Reading
intermediate

Paul Tillich's theory of existential anxiety: A preliminary conceptual and empirical examination

Carl F. Weems, Natalie M. Costa, Christopher Dehon et al. · 2004 · Anxiety, Stress & Coping

At a Glance

Introduces and validates the EAQ, a brief scale testing Tillich’s 3-domain model of existential anxiety and links it to distress

SummaryAI

This paper brings Paul Tillich’s philosophical theory of existential anxiety into testable psychological science by operationalizing his three domains — death/fate, meaninglessness/emptiness, and guilt/condemnation. The authors develop a short self-report instrument (EAQ) and show, across two diverse student samples, that it has acceptable reliability and a factor structure broadly consistent with Tillich’s model. EAQ scores are common in the population and correlate with both anxiety and depression symptoms, while also predicting identity-related distress beyond an established "purpose in life" measure. The work suggests existential concerns are measurable, prevalent, and clinically relevant, motivating longitudinal and clinical-diagnosis studies.

One of the first (and good!) attempt to operationalize Tillich's notions of existential (ontological) anxiety and differentiate it from the regular one. IMO more reliable (content validity) than ECQ.

— ES

Method:
Scale development plus psychometric validation using confirmatory factor analysis and correlational/regression tests of convergent and incremental validity in two samples.
Background:
Basic knowledge of psychology measurement (reliability/validity), factor analysis, and core existential psychology concepts (death, meaning, guilt) under Tillch's framework.