Exploring meaning in life amongst tribal leaders in a Sepedi context

Abstract

Meaning in life is a construct of fundamental importance in positive psychology. Meaning in life is often considered to consist of three aspects: one's life has value and significance, one has a larger purpose in life, and one's life is coherent. Although there is a preponderance of literature on meaning in Western countries, there is minimal evidence from specific cultural groups such as tribal leaders in the Sepedi context in the Limpopo province of South Africa. Theories on meaning in life need to consider cultural values when looking at, for example, the sources of meaning in life. Individualism and self-sufficiency focus on the individual as a separate being and characterise the Western cultural contexts. In contrast, the African cultural context is characterised by respecting community concord above personal preferences. Cultural differences can influence how people develop meaning in their lives and how they view their world. In view of the lack of contextualised bottom-up research on meaning in life in African groups, and the importance of cultural values in the manifestations of meaning, the study aimed to explore experiences of meaning in life among the tribal leaders in a Sepedi context and investigate the unique cultural sources of meaning in life. The explanations of the experiences of meaning in life in the Sepedi context were attained by collecting qualitative data. A qualitative descriptive research design was applied, and ten participants were selected using non-probability purposive sampling. The data were gathered using semi-structured interviews. Thematic analysis was used to code the data and organise the data into coherent themes. The study found that the Sepedi tribal leaders experience meaning through familial interaction and support (these familial bonds include friends and neighbours), commitment to x and appreciation of spiritual beliefs, community reciprocal and leisure activities, and community members. Traditional celebration (culture preservation, cultural rituals, and social bonding in the community) and proverbs were revealed as unique cultural sources of meaning in life. Alternative ways of support and appreciation provided meaning for tribal leaders during the COVID-19 pandemic. While very informative, the findings are limited to the Moletjie context and cannot be generalised to tribal leaders in other communities. Different conclusions may emerge if the study is replicated in another Sepedi or other African community. However, the current research findings are relevant for practice in this and possibly similar contexts and display the need for further studies in other African contexts, using similar theoretical and empirical approaches. The study contributed to the existing knowledge of meaning in life. A key contribution is that the study produces additional evidence on the role of culture in experiences of meaning in life. Relationships emerged as very important in participants' experiences of meaning in life, which corresponds with other research, but experiencing meaning when children realise their goals is noteworthy. This is a form of generativity that goes beyond providing for family members' needs to prioritising their goal accomplishment. Within familial interaction, the value of respect in holding together the family has been highlighted. This corresponds with other studies on family in the African context