The role of social support and purpose in the promotion of character development

Positive purpose during adolescence can lead to a variety of positive outcomes, such as prosocial behavior, moral commitment, character, and competence (Damon, 2003). A review of the literature suggests that three components of positive purpose are important to examine further: presence of meaning in life, goal-directedness, and contribution to the world beyond the self. In addition, social networks have the potential to foster purpose, which, in turn, promotes positive youth development (PYD), and these potential contextual influences merit investigation. Accordingly, this research sought to understand the importance of purpose and social support from family, peers, and religious communities in the formation of character, one of the defining features of PYD (Bowers et al., 2010; Lerner et al., 2005; Phelps et al., 2009).;Data from 430 participants between the ages of 10 and 19 years from the John Templeton Foundation–sponsored study of the Role of Spiritual Development in the Growth of Purpose, Generosity, and Psychological Health in Adolescence were used in the current research. Hierarchical regression analyses, using multiple imputation (MI) methods to account for missing data (Rubin, 1976), were used to assess the role of social support and the presence of meaning in life (one component of purpose) in youth character status. Analyses indicated that religious social support and presence of meaning in life were positively associated with higher reported scores of character status, after accounting for demographic characteristics.;In addition, four qualitative case studies were presented to illustrate how adolescents on either end of the character status continuum (i.e., scores reflecting either high or low levels of character) engaged in “positive purpose” behaviors (i.e., contribution behavior and goal-directedness). Case studies indicated relationships among instances of goal-directed behavior, contribution to others, and character strengths in participants with higher character status scores. On the other hand, reflections of goal-directedness and contribution to others were less prevalent in the case studies of participants with lower character status scores.;Limitations of the current cross-sectional data set and implications of the quantitative and qualitative findings for practical application are discussed. Future research should focus on mixed method, longitudinal data in order to explore the concept of character development rather than character status. In addition, survey items and interview questions that specifically ask participants to elucidate the relationship among social support, purpose, and character development in their lives should be included. Finally, issues for the practical application of the present findings are discussed.