Character strength · Transcendence
Spirituality as a character strength: meaning and examples
The short answer: spirituality, also called a sense of purpose, is having beliefs about the meaning of life and your place in it, and letting them shape what you do. It can be religious, but does not have to be. It is one of the 24 character strengths of the VIA classification, in the Transcendence family: the strengths that connect you to something larger than yourself.
What spirituality looks like
People with a lot of spirituality tend to:
- have a clear sense of what their life is for
- draw comfort from their beliefs in hard times
- make time for reflection, prayer, meditation or quiet
- feel connected to something bigger: a faith, nature, humanity, a cause
- make choices based on deeply held values
In everyday life
At work, spirituality might show as a strong sense of mission: work that feels like a calling rather than a job. In personal life, it may be a religious practice, a daily walk in nature, or service to a community.
For many people, a sense of purpose is what keeps them steady in difficult periods. It answers the question "why does this matter?"
Spirituality and the strengths close to it
- Gratitude often comes with a sense of something larger to be grateful to.
- Appreciation of beauty can lead to the awe that many people describe as spiritual.
- Hope draws strength from believing that life has meaning.
When spirituality is overdone, or underused
Like every strength, spirituality works best in the right amount. Overdone, spirituality can become imposing your beliefs on others, or focusing on the bigger picture at the expense of everyday responsibilities. Underused, people may feel adrift, unsure what their efforts are for.
The aim is a sense of meaning that guides you and respects others' paths.
Is spirituality one of your top strengths?
Ask yourself:
- Do you have a clear sense of purpose in life?
- Do your beliefs help you through difficult times?
- Do you regularly take time for reflection, prayer, meditation or quiet?
If you answered yes to most of these, spirituality may be one of your signature strengths. The only way to know how it compares with your other 23 is to rank them.
Find your top strengths with the free test
Where this comes from
The 24 character strengths were described by psychologists Christopher Peterson and Martin Seligman in Character Strengths and Virtues: A Handbook and Classification (2004). Happy Me's assessment uses public-domain questions from the International Personality Item Pool and is not affiliated with the VIA Institute.