Dr. Barry A. Kosmin Endorses Book by Intentional Insights' President, Dr. Gleb Tsipursky

Columbus, OH, August 24, 2015 (Newswire.com) - Can science really help people understand the purpose of life and teach them how to live a meaningful life? This is the claim made by Dr. Gleb Tsipursky, the author of Find Your Purpose Using Science, a book that was recently endorsed by Dr. Barry A. Kosmin.

Dr. Barry A. Kosmin is a Research Professor of Public Policy and Law at Trinity College, the Director of the Institute for the Study of Secularism in Society and Culture, and wrote Religion in a Free Market: Religious and Non-Religious Americans and One Nation Under God: Religion in Contemporary American Society. In his endorsement of the book, Dr. Kosmin states:

This workbook meets  an important new need for the nation’s growing demographic of rational thinkers. One of the most significant societal changes in the past few decades has been a burgeoning population of Nones – those who have rejected or are disinterested in the myriad options organized religion offers.  They are mainly young people who face the challenge of negotiating their way through in a fast changing and challenging world. One of their crucial questions is how to fill they fill “gap” in one’s  sense of meaning and purpose that religion provided for older generations.  Gleb Tsipursky brings useful tools, based on the fruits of recent scientific and academic research, to those seeking to use reason in their personal search for meaning and purpose.

Dr. Tsipursky is a tenure-track professor at Ohio State University. As a historian of science, he researches the intersection of history, psychology, and cognitive neuroscience, focusing on meaning and purpose, decision-making, emotions, and agency. He is also a science popularizer, a best-selling author, and president of the nonprofit organization Intentional Insights (www.intentionalinsights.org).

His workbook combines an engaging narrative, stories from people’s lives, and research-informed exercises designed to help people cultivate a rich sense of meaning and purpose. The book is part of other content that he developed at Intentional Insights that focuses on whether science can really answer life’s big questions, such as why am I here, and what is the purpose of life for me? These questions, as Dr. Tsipursky describes in his work, have become answerable due to a recent wave of research in psychology, cognitive neuroscience, and medicine.

The findings reveal three science-informed strategies for finding purpose and living a meaningful life. The first set of strategies stems from the work of Victor Frankl, a Viennese psychiatrist who lived through the Holocaust concentration camps. In his research and work, both in the camps and afterward in private practice, he found that, in order for individuals to survive and thrive, it is crucial for each to self-reflect on their sense of purpose and meaning in life. The second set of strategies stems from studies showing that people have a greater sense of meaning and purpose in life when they are part of a community and have strong social bonds. The third comes from extensive research that demonstrates how opportunities to serve others, whether in civic, charitable, private, or professional settings, results in a stronger sense of purpose and meaning in life. This sense of purpose, in turn, leads to better mental and physical well-being.

The workbook describes these strategies in much greater depth, with a free book version available at the website of Intentional Insights, a nonprofit devoted to inspiring people to refine and reach their goals. This nonprofit provides research-based content to help improve thinking, feeling, and behavior patterns. Intentional Insights also offers free online classes, videotaped workshops, blogs, and other content on meaning and purpose, as well as in a variety of other topics.

Read the book to learn more about scientific strategies that can help people find their sense of life purpose and lead a meaningful life.