Well-being in the post-pandemic era: the role of meaning in life and resilience

Introduction: The post-pandemic period significantly disrupted individuals’ daily routines, challenged their sense of purpose, and led to declines in psychological well-being. Prolonged uncertainty and loss of social continuity contributed to heightened anxiety for some individuals, while others continued to maintain life satisfaction. This study examines whether meaning in life enhances psychological resilience and whether resilience, in turn, influences anxiety and life satisfaction. Methods: Data were collected from 259 white-collar employees working in İstanbul. A quantitative, cross-sectional design was used to test the proposed relationships between meaning in life, resilience, anxiety, and life satisfaction through mediation analyses. Results: Meaning in life positively predicted resilience, and resilience positively predicted life satisfaction while negatively predicting anxiety. Meaning in life also exerted a direct positive effect on life satisfaction and a direct negative effect on anxiety. Mediation analyses revealed that resilience significantly mediated the effects of meaning in life on both anxiety and life satisfaction. Discussion: The findings highlight the protective role of meaning in life and resilience in mitigating anxiety and enhancing life satisfaction during the post-pandemic period. These results underscore the importance of developing interventions and organizational programs that cultivate meaning and strengthen resilience to support individual well-being in challenging contexts.