Attachments
Why do we need the YMI?
Research suggests that young people who feel a strong sense of purpose and meaning are better equipped to navigate challenges, exhibit greater motivation, and contribute positively to their communities (Mariano & Damon, 2008). This understanding calls for the development of frameworks that go beyond traditional well-being metrics to include the existential dimensions of life that are particularly salient for today’s youth across the globe. For adolescents, higher levels of meaningfulness are associated with lower substance abuse, a reduced likelihood of suicidal thoughts and attempts, and better health maintenance.
Despite growing interest in how people of all ages experience meaning, the study of meaningfulness in children and youth remains limited. Expanding this field can provide valuable insights for developing policies and programs that support young people’s well-being, resilience, and life satisfaction—helping them build fulfilling lives with a strong sense of purpose.
Traditional surveys often measure objective factors like access to education and healthcare. The YMI breaks away from this approach by focusing on something far more personal and transformative: how young people themselves experience meaning in their lives - an aspect that goes beyond temporary feelings to address a deeper sense of purpose and fulfillment. Unlike conventional metrics that reduce well-being to material conditions, the YMI centers youth voices to uncover the deeper drivers of fulfillment, purpose, and resilience. But the YMI also applies a unique methodology with a first phase of crowdsourcing of the drivers of meaning using AI followed by a collaborative process involving youth in creating the tool and interpreting results. This ensures that YMI is not just a measurement tool, but a platform for action, co-designed with and for young people.
By shifting the focus from top-down assessments to lived experiences, YMI offers policymakers a practical yet groundbreaking framework for crafting policies that reflect youth aspirations rather than assumptions.