Correlations Between Purpose in Life (ikigai) and State Anxiety in Schizoid Temperament with Considerations of Early Life, Youth, and Adulthood Experiences

This study elucidated correlations in early life, youth, and adulthood experiences with purpose in life (PIL) (ikigai), temperament, and state anxiety under acute stress. Participants were 62 healthy male and female adult volunteers. Acute anxiety was induced by entering a laboratory, meeting an instructor for the first time, or filling out five subjects more like tests, and followed by a performance of mental arithmetic. All subjects completed the Personality Inventory (INV) and were subsequently assigned to one of two groups: schizoid temperament or other temperaments. Subjects also completed the Early Life, Youth, and Adulthood Experiences Inventory (EYAEI) modified from the Youth and Adulthood Experiences Inventory (YAEI), the PIL test, the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), and the Interest in Mental Arithmetic Test (IMAT). For those with a schizoid temperament, positive significant correlations between positive experiences before elementary school and in adulthood and PIL scores, and negative significant correlations between PIL and state anxiety scores were observed. In the other temperaments group, there were positive significant correlations between positive experiences before elementary school to adulthood and PIL scores, and no significant correlation between PIL scores and state anxiety scores. In conclusion, a firm purpose in life develops by positive experiences before elementary school and in adulthood in individuals with a schizoid temperament and before elementary school to adulthood in those with other temperaments. These results indicate that a firm PIL might contribute to a lower state anxiety caused by meeting others only in people with a schizoid temperament.