In today’s climate of global economic uncertainty, geopolitical conflicts, ecological crisis, and the widening gap between haves and have-nots, the meaning perspective offers a promising vision to resolve these challenging global issues and achieve sustainable growth for both individuals and society.

This is the only international conference that emphasizes both positive psychology and existential psychology; it is also the home for logotherapy and existential positive psychotherapy. The conference will highlight the role of meaning in well-being, flourishing, character strengths, resilience, post-traumatic growth, spirituality, psychotherapy, healing, recovery, and positive organizations. It will emphasize both cutting edge research and the application of research findings to meaningful living.

We will host a number of summits involving the most creative minds and best known experts to explore new frontiers and find new solutions. We believe that the meaning-mindset offers an alternative global vision for developing healthy communities and living rewarding lives. The pre-conference professional workshops will cover the latest developments in counselling and psychotherapy.

The conference will place a premium on providing delegates with opportunities for interactions with participants from different theoretical camps and cultures. Through cross-fertilization, integration and networking, we hope that we can find new pathways to make life better for all.

CE credits will be available to psychologists and counsellors.

Highlights of the Meaning Conference:

This Meaning Conference represents the world’s first summit on the topic of What Makes Life Worth Living. Leaders from different traditions, positive psychology, logotherapy, humanistic/existential psychology, and constructivist psychology, will meet face-to-face to explore common grounds and diverse facets of this important topic

Alexander Vesely, film maker and grandson of Viktor Frankl, will premiere “Viktor and I” — a documentary with a unique and personal look at Dr. Frankl, author of “Man’s Search For Meaning.

Dr. Christopher Peterson, Dr. Richard Ryan, and Dr. Emmy van Deurzen will be given Lifetime Achievement Awards at the Meaning Conference.

Confirmed keynote speakers:

1. Christopher Peterson, PhD – Meaning and Mattering: Perspectives from Positive Psychology
2. Laura King, PhD – Noticing Meaning in Everyday Life: Pleasure, Intuition, and Magic
3. Robert Neimeyer, PhD – Mourning and Meaning: The Narrative Arc of Traumatic Loss
4. Jordan Peterson, PhD – Redemption and Psychology in Christianity
5. Mark Kingwell, PhD – Happiness and the Art of Play
6. Todd Kashdan, PhD – The Science of Spirituality: Essential and Impossible
7. Salvatore Maddi, PhD – Hardiness Protects Against Internet Addiction and Excessive
   Consumer Spending
8. Emmy van Deurzen, PhD – The Meaning of Suffering: Emotional Life and our Reasons for Being
9. George Bonanno, PhD – Trauma, Flexibility, and Meaning
10. Alan Waterman, PhD – Identity and Meaning: Contrasts of Existentialist and Essentialist Perspectives
11. Paul T.P. Wong, PhD – The Meaning-Mindset as the Foundation for Healing and Flourishing
12. Richard Ryan, PhD – Self-determination Theory and Eudaimonic Living: Research on Basic Psychological Needs for Wellness and Meaning
13. Harris Friedman, PhD – Transpersonal Psychotherapies

Confirmed invited speakers:

1. Jonathan Raskin, PhD – Constructivist Psychology
2. Rosemary Henrion, MSN, M Ed, RN – Logotherapy
3. Danielle Nahon, PhD – Existential Psychotherapy
4. Nedra Lander, PhD – Existential Psychotherapy
5. Gordon Medlock, PhD – Humanistic/Existential Psychology
6. Ishu Ishiyama, PhD – Indigenous Psychology (Morita Therapy)
7. Louise Sundararajan, PhD – Indigenous Psychology
8. Kathryn Britton, MAPP – Positive Psychology
9. Charles Chen, PhD – Constructivist Psychology
10. Lisa Firestone, PhD – Existential Psychology
11. Dmitry Leontiev, PhD – Existential Psychology
12. Charles McLafferty Jr., PhD – Logotherapy
13. Ike Chang, PhD – Indigenous Psychology
14. Haddon Klingberg Jr., PhD – Logotherapy
15. Leo Michel Abrami, MAHL – Logotherapy
16. Jingping Xu, PhD – Positive Psychology

Confirmed pre-conference workshop leaders:

1. Stanley Krippner, PhD – Finding Meaning in Dreams: The Use of Dream Reports in Counseling and Psychotherapy
2. Robert Neimeyer, PhD – Techniques of Grief Therapy: Narrative Practices for Counseling the Bereaved
3. Emmy van Deurzen, PhD – Living with your Emotions
4. George Bonanno, PhD – Loss, Trauma, and Human Resilience
5. Salvatore Maddi, PhD & Deborah Khoshaba, PhD – Hardiness Assessment & Training
6. Paul T. P. Wong, PhD – Assessment and Intervention in Meaning Therapy

Call for papers:

We welcome submissions in a wide variety of areas related to the role of meaning/purpose in positive psychology, existential-humanistic psychology, psychotherapy, counselling, and social-personality research. However, we will also consider any submissions related to positive psychology and existential psychology.

Presentation types: Poster, paper presentation, symposium, and workshop. Abstracts for poster or paper presentation submissions should be about 500 words. Proposals for symposia should include a 500-word overview and short abstracts (about 200 words) by individual participants. Proposals for workshops should include a 1000-word overview. Please submit all abstracts to the Conference Chair, Dr. Paul T. P. Wong: drpaulwong@gmail.com.