Faculty and Staff Directory

The PEP Lab's Outcomes
*Denotes student authors; these authors contributed equally to the poster/paper and the order of authorship was determined randomly

International

1. Li, P. F. J., *Appleton, P. *Kisky, B., *Leong, R., *Saucedo S., & *Rowe, D. (accepted). Testing the Tripartite Model of Meaning in Life in a sample of Christians with beliefs in free will, scientific and fatal determinism, and unpredictability as meaning frameworks. Paper presented at the Positive Psychology 2.0 International Conference 2025, Hong Kong.

National

1. Li, P. F. J., *Biscarret, R., *Linde, G. S., *Lee, R., *Osuna, M., *Somera, J., Chan, C.-K., Xiao, Y. J., & O’Donnell, M. (2024, August). Addressing the jingle jangle fallacy: A further comparison of meaning and purpose. Poster presented at the annual convention of the American Psychological Association, Seattle, WA. 

Institutional

1. *Wong, S., *Lo, F., Li, P. F. J., Sun, R.-W., Leung, M. M., & Chan, C.-K. (2025, May). Hong Kong college students’ lay beliefs about flourishing: A directed content analysis. Poster presentation at the 2025 Global Engagement Conference at University of Washington Tacoma.

Research Line I: Conceptualization

1. Li. P. F. J. (2025). Subjective social status, depressive symptoms, and suicide ideation in U.S. college students: A cross-sectional examination on race and gender. Journal of American College Health. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1080/07448481.2024.2446440
2. Li, P. F. J. (2024). Being Spiritual But Not Religious (SBNR): Testing the Tripartite Meaning in Life Model with beliefs in free will and determinism as meaning frameworks. Journal of Humanistic Psychology. Advance online publication. http://doi.org/10.1177/00221678241273353
3. Li, P. F. J., *Chan, C.-K., *Xiao, Y. J., & *O'Donnell, M. (2023). A further comparison between meaning and purpose: Examining factor structures, partial correlational, unique and indirect associations with mental health outcomes. Counselling Psychology Quarterly, 37(4), 673–694. https://doi.org/10.1080/09515070.2023.2292208 
   *the authors contributed equally to the manuscript and the order of authorship was determined randomly
4. Li, P. F. J., Wong, Y. J., Granderson, R. M., & Jackson, D. (2022). Comprehension, purpose, and mattering? A latent profile analysis of laypeople’s beliefs about meaning in life. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 17(6), 909–923. https://doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2021.1991445
5. Li, P. F. J., Wong, Y. J., & McDermott, R. C. (2021). Examining Nietzsche’s Epigram: Having a why helps you bear almost any how? Journal of Humanistic Psychology. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1177/00221678211041828
6. Li, P. F. J., & Wong, Y. J. (2020). Beliefs in free will versus determinism: Search for meaning mediates the life scheme—depressive symptom link. Journal of Humanistic Psychology, 64(5), 940–953. https://doi.org/10.1177%2F0022167820933719
7. Li, P. F. J., Wong, Y. J., McDermott, R., Cheng, H, & Ruser, J. (2019). U.S. college students’ lay beliefs about hope: A mixed-methods study. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 16(2), 249–262. https://doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2019.1689420
8. Li, P. F. J., Wong, Y. J., & Chao, R. C.-L. (2019). Happiness and meaning in life: Unique, differential, and indirect associations with mental health. Counselling Psychology Quarterly, 32(3-4), 396–414. https://doi.org/10.1080/09515070.2019.1604493 

Research Line II: Measurement

1. Li. P. F. J., Svetina Valdivia, D., & Wong, Y. J. (in press). Are the dimensions of meaning in life distinct? A bifactor model of comprehension, purpose, and mattering with four samples. Journal of Counseling Psychology.
2. Li, P. F. J., & Chow, A. (2025). Has human progress stagnated in recent decades? Evaluating Seligman’s (2021) model of agency and its correlates using the MIDUS three-wave longitudinal study. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 20(1), 15–30. http://doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2024.2314288
3. Svetina Valdivia, D., & Li, P. F. J. (2022). Psychometric properties and internal validity of the Multidimensional Existential Meaning Scale. Measurement and Evaluation in Counseling and Development, 55(3), 166–186. https://doi.org/10.1080/07481756.2021.1998779
4. Li, P. F. J., Wong, Y. J., McCullough, K. M., Jin, L., & Wang, C. D. (2022). Existential Meaninglessness Scale: Scale development and psychometric properties. Journal of Humanistic Psychology. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1177%2F00221678211072450

Research Line III: Intervention

1. Li, P. F. J., & Wong, Y. J. (2024). The Multilevel Personality-to-Purpose (MPP) Framework: Promoting purpose in life through fulfilling basic psychological needs, strengths, values, identity and passion. European Journal of Applied Positive Psychology, 8(7), 1–13. https://www.nationalwellbeingservice.org/volumes/volume-8-2024/volume-8-article-7
2. Li, P. F. J., Wong, Y. J., Deng, K., & Li, Y. (2024). Gratitude in a culturally adapted psychotherapy group and in Chinese culture: Interpretative phenomenological analysis. Asian American Journal of Psychology, 15(2), 118–133. https://doi.org/10.1037/aap0000336
3. Li, P. F. J., & Wong, Y. J. (2021). Strength-Centered Therapy: A positive and culturally flexible therapeutic approach. Asia Pacific Journal of Counselling and Psychotherapy, 12(2), 154–169. https://doi.org/10.1080/21507686.2021.1925313
4. Li, P. F. J., Wong, Y. J., & Cawthra, J. N. (2019). I’d like to have all the characteristics of a hero: A case study of Strength-Centered Therapy. Clinical Case Studies, 18(3), 200–219. https://doi.org/10.1177%2F1534650119837353