Eudaimonic and Uncertainty Metaphors About Life are Associated with Meaningfulness, Experiential Avoidance, Mental Health and Happiness

Metaphors are frequently used in psychological interventions, as they are assumed to have effects on cognition and behavior. However, empirical research on this subject is still scarce. This research aims to identify possible types of metaphors that people use to understand life and to analyze the relationships between life metaphors, meaningfulness, experiential avoidance, happiness and mental health. A total of 1536 individuals from Spain and Latin America responded to a survey on the use of life metaphors, which also collected data on their feelings of meaning in life as well as levels of experiential avoidance, happiness, anxiety, depression and general mental health. In Part 1, using exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis, two independent types of life metaphors were identified, i.e. eudaimonic metaphors (e.g. life is a treasure) and uncertainty metaphors (e.g. life is a maze). Moreover, other complex metaphors referred to fiction (e.g. life is a stage play, a dream) and confinement (e.g. life is a prison) were analyzed in relation to eudaimonic and uncertainity dimensions. In Part 2, eudaimonic metaphors were found associated with higher levels of happiness and meaningfulness, and lower levels of experiential avoidance, anxiety, depression and mental health problems. Conversely, uncertainty metaphors were associated with lower happiness and meaning in life, higher experiential avoidance, and higher presence of mental health symptoms. The results are coherent with the idea that, in clinical contexts, metaphors can be remarkable indicators of psychological problems and also offer an interesting tool for intervention.