Research agenda: develop an existential hope scale, then test the framework with SEM and network analysis in longitudinal designs¶

Strategy · All strategies
Evidence · no claims cited

Description¶

The article recommends a two-step empirical agenda. First, develop a psychometrically sound existential hope scale through theory-driven and interview-based item generation, factor analysis, reliability, convergent and discriminant validity, and measurement invariance testing. Second, test the framework as a whole: "Structural equation modeling (SEM) would be particularly well suited for this purpose, as it would allow for the simultaneous estimation of latent constructs, mediation pathways, and indirect effects," complemented by psychometric network analysis and longitudinal designs.

Design Implications¶

Context¶

Requirements¶

• Item generation grounded in theories about existential hope and its components, with content validity established in populations facing existential disruption

Constraints¶

• Measurement invariance across age groups, cultural contexts, and types of existential threat is stated as crucial to determine whether existential hope is generalizable or context-specific

Target Learners¶

• Researchers studying populations facing existential disruption such as climate anxiety, chronic illness, or cultural marginalization

Target Learning Goals¶

• Measuring and empirically validating the components, processes, and outcomes of existential hope

Related Strategies¶

• Adapt global citizenship scale items to the local context and validate component models separately with PLS-SEM
• Research agenda: use process-oriented assessments, study encoding-consolidation-retrieval effects, and examine longitudinal outcomes of educational generative AI
• Adopt a staged research agenda: measure the three belief dimensions, test incremental validity, and run component-level and person-centered tests

Examples¶

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Key Sources¶

• Bohlmeijer, E., Nieuwenhuis, M., Dominguez, A. R., Klooster, P. ten, and Malboeuf-Hurtubise, C. (2026). Toward an integrative psychological framework of existential hope: navigating uncertain futures. Frontiers in Psychology. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2026.1850611