Professional competence areas:
- Alienation and existential indifference
- Meaning in life
- Meaning in work
- Psychology of Religion, Spirituality and Secularity
- Suffering and mortality awareness
I joined MF as professor of existential psychology in October 2020. After studying psychology, theology, religious studies and philosophy in Göttingen (GER), London (UK), Heidelberg (GER) and Cambridge (UK), I obtained my doctorate in Psychology at the University of Trier (GER) and my habilitation in Psychology at the university of Innsbruck (AT), where I also founded the Existential Psychology Lab. My research focuses on the conceptualisation and measurement of meaning in life, as well as on the nexus of meaning in life and secularity, religion, spirituality, well-being, health, work, and civic engagement. I further work on transdisciplinary approaches to suffering, mortality awareness and alienation, and their practical significance for individuals, organisations, society, and the natural environment. I am a Fellow at the Humanistic University Berlin (GER), member of several editorial boards (Journal of Happiness Studies, Archive for the Psychology of Religion, Personality Science, International Journal for the Psychology of Religion, Secular Studies, etc.) and other international academic committees. Latest monograph: The Psychology of Meaning in Life (Routledge, 2021).
Selected publications
View all publications on the Cristin website...
- Schnell, T. (2021). The Psychology of Meaning in Life, Routledge, ISBN: 9780367415853
- Schnell, T. & Krampe, H. (2020). Meaning in Life and Self-Control Buffer Stress in Times of COVID-19: Moderating and Mediating Effects With Regard to Mental Distress. , Frontiers in Psychiatry, Frontiers in Psychiatry, ISSN: 1664-0640
- la Cour, P. & Schnell, T. (2020). Presentation of the Sources of Meaning Card Method: The SoMeCaM., Journal of humanistic psychology, s. 20 - 42. Journal of humanistic psychology, ISSN: 0022-1678
Latest academic publications
View all publications on the Cristin website...
- Votter, B. & Schnell, T. (2024). Life Meaning Versus Intelligence: An Analysis of Three Qualities of Meaning Among Gifted Adults, Logotherapy and Existential Analysis ,, Springer Publishing Company, ISBN: 9783031489211
- Ishaq, B. & Bjertness, E. & Østby, L. & Johannessen, A. & Schnell, T. (2024). Is the degree of religiosity related to community belonging and trust in society? A cross-sectional study among Muslims in Norway, Social Sciences & Humanities Open, Social Sciences & Humanities Open
- Austad, A. & Cheyeka, A. M. & Danbolt, L. J. & Kamanga, G. & Mwale, N. & Stifoss-Hanssen, H. (2023). Experiences of meaning in life in urban and rural Zambia, Archive for the Psychology of Religion/ Archiv für Religionspsychologie, s. 247 - 268. Archive for the Psychology of Religion/ Archiv für Religionspsychologie, ISSN: 0084-6724
- Spitzenstätter, D. & Schnell, T. (2023). The Uncertain Certainty: A Mixed Methods Exploration of Personal Meanings of Death and Preliminary Insights Into Their Relationship With Worldview, Omega - Journal of Death and Dying, Omega - Journal of Death and Dying, ISSN: 0030-2228
- Schnell, T. & Danbolt, L. J. (2023). The Meaning and Purpose Scales (MAPS): development and multi-study validation of short measures of meaningfulness, crisis of meaning, and sources of purpose , BMC Psychology, s. 1 - 17. BMC Psychology, ISSN: 2050-7283
- Haver, A. & Krampe, H. & Danbolt, L. J. & Stålsett, G. & Schnell, T. (2023). Emotion regulation moderates the association between COVID-19 stress and mental distress: findings on buffering, exacerbation, and gender differences in a cross-sectional study from Norway, Frontiers in Psychology, s. 1 - 15. Frontiers in Psychology, ISSN: 1664-1078
- La Cour, P. & Schnell, T. (2023). Kilder til mening - kortmetoden 2. udgave - dansk version , ISBN: 9783991050414
- La Cour, P. & Schnell, T. (2023). LeBe Kartenmethode , ISBN: 9783991050421
- La Cour, P. & Schnell, T. (2023). Kilder til mening – kortmetoden , ISBN: 978-3-99105-043-8
- Schnell, T. (2022). Suffering as meaningful choice. An existential approach., Ta vare. En bok om diakoni, sjelesorg og eksistensiell helse. Festskrift til Hans Stifoss-Hanssen,, s. 3 - 14. ISBN: 978-82-8456-007-6
- Kreiss, C. & Schnell, T. (2022). Have a good day! An experience-sampling study of daily meaningful and pleasant activities, Frontiers in Psychology, Frontiers in Psychology, ISSN: 1664-1078
- Urata, Y. & Shimai, S. & Yamamoto, J. & Schnell, T. (2022). ME-Work Japanese version: Development of a modular meaning in work inventory (2)モジュール式仕事の意味尺度ME-Work日本版の開発（2: Study of factors related to meaning in work仕事の意味に関連する要因の検討., The Proceedings of the Annual Convention of the Japanese Psychological Association, The Proceedings of the Annual Convention of the Japanese Psychological Association, ISSN: 2433-7609
- Shimai, S. & Urata, Y. & Yamamoto, J. & Schnell, T. (2022). ME-Work Japanese version: Development of a modular meaning in work inventory (1)モジュール式仕事の意味尺度ME-Work日本版の開発（１）: Score distributions, factor validity, internal consistency, and relationship of modular scores得点分布、因子的妥性、内的一貫性、モジュール得点間の関連, The Proceedings of the Annual Convention of the Japanese Psychological Association, The Proceedings of the Annual Convention of the Japanese Psychological Association, ISSN: 2433-7609
- Schnell, T. & Krampe, H. (2022). Meaningfulness protects from and crisis of meaning exacerbates general mental distress longitudinally, BMC Psychiatry, BMC Psychiatry, ISSN: 1471-244X
- Krampe, H. & Danbolt, L. J. & Haver, A. & Stålsett, G. & Schnell, T. (2021). Locus of control moderates the association of COVID-19 stress and general mental distress: results of a Norwegian and a German-speaking cross-sectional survey, BMC Psychiatry, s. 1 - 13. BMC Psychiatry, ISSN: 1471-244X
- Tommasi, F. V. & Sartori, R. & Ceschi, A. & Schnell, T. (2021). The Meaning in Work Inventory : Validation of the Italian version and its association with sociodemographic variables, Bollettino di psicologia applicata, s. 17 - 36. Bollettino di psicologia applicata, ISSN: 0006-6761
- Schnell, T. & de Boer, E. & Alma, H. (2021). Worlds Apart? Atheist, Agnostic, and Humanist Worldviews in Three European Countries, Psychology of Religion and Spirituality, s. 83 - 93. Psychology of Religion and Spirituality, ISSN: 1941-1022
- Böhmer, M. & la Cour, P. & Schnell, T. (2021). A randomized controlled trial of the Sources of Meaning Card Method: a new meaning-oriented approach predicts depression, anxiety, pain acceptance, and crisis of meaning in chronic pain patients., Pain medicine (Malden, Mass.), s. 314 - 325. Pain medicine (Malden, Mass.), ISSN: 1526-2375
- Schnell, T. & Spitzenstätter, D. & Krampe, H. (2021). Compliance With Covid-19 Public Health Guidelines: An Attitude-Behaviour Gap Bridged by Personal Concern and Distance to Conspiracy Ideation. , Psychology and Health, Psychology and Health, ISSN: 0887-0446
- Schnell, T. (2021). The Psychology of Meaning in Life, Routledge, ISBN: 9780367415853
- Schnell, T. & Fuchs, D. & Hefti, R. (2020). Worldview under stress: Preliminary findings on cardiovascular and cortisol stress responses predicted by secularity, religiosity, spirituality, and existential search, Journal of religion and health, s. 2969 - 2989. Journal of religion and health, ISSN: 0022-4197
- Krampe, H. & Goerling, U. & Spies, C. D. & Gerhards, S. K. & Enge, S. & Salz, A. (2020). Sense of coherence, mental well-being and perceived preoperative hospital and surgery related stress in surgical patients with malignant, benign, and no neoplasms, BMC Psychiatry, BMC Psychiatry, ISSN: 1471-244X
- Schnell, T. (2020). Sinnerleben und Wohlergehen in Zeiten von Covid-19, Wissenschaftliches Jahrbuch der Tiroler Landesmuseen. 13(2020),, s. 31 - 35. Studienverlag, ISBN: 978-3706560825
- Schnell, T. (2020). Psychologie des Lebenssinns, Springer, ISBN: 978-3-662-61119-7
- Schnell, T. & Krampe, H. (2020). Meaning in Life and Self-Control Buffer Stress in Times of COVID-19: Moderating and Mediating Effects With Regard to Mental Distress. , Frontiers in Psychiatry, Frontiers in Psychiatry, ISSN: 1664-0640
- Spitzenstaetter, D. & Schnell, T. (2020). Effects of mortality awareness on attitudes toward dying and death and meaning in life-a randomized controlled trial., Death Studies, s. 1219 - 1233. Death Studies, ISSN: 0748-1187
- la Cour, P. & Schnell, T. (2020). Presentation of the Sources of Meaning Card Method: The SoMeCaM., Journal of humanistic psychology, s. 20 - 42. Journal of humanistic psychology, ISSN: 0022-1678
- Schnell, T. (2020). Glücksversprechen? Die Selbstdarstellung diakonischer Sozialunternehmen aus Perspektive der Sinn- und Glücksforschung., Gibt es Glück in der Diakonie ,, s. 17 - 34. Mohr Siebeck, ISBN: 978-3-16-159095-5
- Schnell, T. & Hoffmann, C. (2020). ME-Work: Development and validation of a modular meaning in work inventory., Frontiers in Psychology, Frontiers in Psychology, ISSN: 1664-1078
- Spitzenstätter, D. & Schnell, T. (2020). The existential dimension of the pandemic: Death attitudes, personal worldview, and coronavirus anxiety, Death Studies, s. 1031 - 1041. Death Studies, ISSN: 0748-1187
- Schnell, T. & Höge, T. & Weber, W. G. (2019). Belonging' and its relationship to the experience of meaningful work, The Oxford Handbook of Meaningful Work,, s. 165 - 185. Oxford University Press, ISBN: 9780198788232
- Votter, B. & Schnell, T. (2019). Cross-Lagged Analyses Between Life Meaning, Self-Compassion, and Subjective Well-being Among Gifted Adults, Mindfulness, s. 1294 - 1303. Mindfulness, ISSN: 1868-8527
- Votter, B. & Schnell, T. (2019). Bringing Giftedness to Bear: Generativity, Meaningfulness, and Self-Control as Resources for a Happy Life Among Gifted Adults, Frontiers in Psychology, Frontiers in Psychology, ISSN: 1664-1078
- Sørensen, T. & la Cour, P. & Danbolt, L. J. & Stifoss-Hanssen, H. & Lien, L. & deMarinis, V. (2018). The Sources of Meaning and Meaning in Life Questionnaire in the Norwegian Context: Relations to Mental Health, Quality of Life, and Self-Efficacy, The international journal for the psychology of religion, s. 32 - 45. The international journal for the psychology of religion, ISSN: 1050-8619
- Krampe, H. & Barth-Zoubairi, A. & Schnell, T. & Salz, A. & Kerper, L. F. & Spies, C. D. (2018). Social Relationship Factors, Preoperative Depression, and Hospital Length of Stay in Surgical Patients, International Journal of Behavioral Medicine, s. 1 - 11. International Journal of Behavioral Medicine, ISSN: 1070-5503
- Pedersen, H. F. & Birkeland, M. H. & Jensen, J. S. & Schnell, T. & Hvidt, N. C. & Sørensen, T. (2018). What brings meaning to life in a highly secular society? A study on sources of meaning among Danes, Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, s. 678 - 690. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, ISSN: 0036-5564