40-55 中年世代之人生意義探討
中文摘要
中年世代身處人生階段承先啓後的關鍵位置，融匯奉養父母與教養子女的多重角色，
又面臨生理機能與心理認知上的改變，所承擔的責任不可謂之不重。然而，對於支撐整
個社會的「中流砥柱」，卻鮮少有相關的研究。再者，與人生意義相關的研究以歐美為
主，且多數以人生意義問卷的形式呈現。然而，人生意義的概念相當個體化，目前雖然
已知人生意義是很重要的概念，但是對於人生意義的組成成分、如何呈現以及是否有不
同文化背景的差異等議題，仍需進一步探討。因此，本研究透過質性研究深度訪談法，
以半結構式的開放性訪綱，訪問十位 40 到 55 歲的中年世代，並以敘事研究的觀點分析編碼，探討兩大核心議題：（一）臺灣 40-55 歲中年世代的生命經驗細節樣貌為何？有無任何共同點？（二）臺灣 40-55 歲中年世代如何評價與尋求人生意義，其意義來源有哪些？
研究結果發現，臺灣中年世代有三大共同特色：（一）機會與挑戰並存；（二）對前
半段的生命歷程有省思與轉變；（三）由外求轉向內發。中年世代的意義來源則是來自
七大方面：財務、助人、自我發展、信仰、家庭、健康與傳承。
中年世代因為扮演多重角色，要照顧、給建議、有互動與能影響的人也最多，他們
的身心健康牽動著與之有關聯的各個世代。因此，更深入地理解中年世代，不但對於中
年世代有著支持的作用，對於在家庭、職場與社會中倚賴他們作為橋梁的年輕與老年世
代，也有廣泛深遠的影響。

關鍵字：中年、人生意義、個人成長、人生滿意度、幸福感

Discussions of 40-55 Middle-aged Adults’ Meaning of
Life in Taiwan
Abstract
Midlife is a pivotal period in the life course linking earlier and later periods, which
middle-aged adults hold responsibilities for those younger and older in the family while facing changes in mental and physical health. We can say that middle-aged adults carry much
of the weight of the society. Nevertheless, little is known about midlife. Moreover, researches relating to meaning of life were mostly conducted in countries of Europe and North America
and most of them used Meaning in Life Questionnaire as the assessment instrument. However, the concept of meaning of life is quite individualized. Therefore, given that meaning of life is
an important notion, what are the components, how they are presented and whether there are cultural differences all need to be further discussed. Hence, qualitative research design was
adopted in the study to interview 10 middle-aged adults with age ranging from 40 to 55. Information gathered by the semi-structured interviews were coded and analyzed using a
framework of narrative inquiry. The aim of this study was to examine two crucial aspects of midlife: (1) What are the details of life experiences of 40-55 middle-aged adults in Taiwan? Do they have anything in common? (2) How do 40-55 middle-aged adults in Taiwan evaluate and search for meaning of life and what are the sources of their meaning of life?
Results found that the middle-aged adults in Taiwan had three characteristics in common:
(1) The coexistence of opportunities and challenges; (2) The reflection and changes derived
from the life courses experienced; (3) The focus of life turning from external to internal. As to the sources of meaning of life, they were finance, helping others, self-development, religion,
family, health and cultural heritage.
The midlife period is characterized by a complex interplay of multiple roles. Middle-aged adults take care of, give advices, influence and interact with younger and older generations. Their mental and physical health will deeply affect those who have a connection with them. Therefore, better understanding of midlife could be supportive for middle-aged adults and has a far-reaching influence on younger and older generations who depend on middle-aged groups in the family, workplace and society.

Keywords: middle-aged, midlife, meaning of life, personal development, life satisfaction, well-being

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