Perceived personal meaning among Religious of Norte Dame of the Missions (RNDM) in India: Implications for formation

• Main Author: Kavumpurath, Omana Kurian, RNDM
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Animo Repository 2005
• Subjects: Meaning (Philosophy)—Religious aspects—Christianity; Counseling; Religious Education
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/etd_masteral/6671; https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/context/etd_masteral/article/12836/viewcontent/CDTG004014_P.pdf
• Institution: De La Salle University

This study explored the perceived personal meaning among the Religious of Notre Dame of the Mission in India. The participants of the study were 60 religious ranging in age from 26 to 60. Having employed both quantitative and qualitative research design, the modified Personal Meaning Profile-India, an open-ended questionnaire on an ideally meaningful life and a check list format on the key values were used for data collection. Responses were analyzed according to their content and category. The narratives on the ideally meaningful life encompassed all the components of meaning namely, cognitive, affective, motivational, personal and relational. The important values were found as bedrock for a meaningful living. The middle adults reported higher mean level for the factors: Affirmation of Meaning and Purpose in life, Relationship with Nature, Intimate Relationship, Spirituality, Self-Acceptance, Morality, Altruism and Self Transcendence and Fair-Treatment. They reported lower mean level for the factors: Achievements and General Relationship. The young adults reported higher mean level for the factors: Affirmation of Meaning and Purpose in life, Intimate Relationship, Spirituality, Relationship with Nature, Altruism and SelfTranscendence, General Relationship, Achievements and Morality. They rated lower mean level for the factors: Fair-Treatment and Self-Acceptance. The over all mean level of both the groups were higher and satisfactory. There was no significant difference in the various domains of the PMP when the respondents were grouped according to their age. The findings indicated that the perceptions of personal meaning are not entities that reside in individuals; they are intertwined with personality makeup, interpersonal styles, individuals’ personal histories and socio-cultural experiences. The result of this study is of useful in looking into its implications concerning the RNDM formation in the Indian Provinces.