Trusting your own instincts seems to have some bearing on whether you feel a sense of purpose in life

Does your life have meaning? To find out, rate the items below on a scale of 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree), then add up your score.



a) I rarely go wrong when I follow my instincts

b) I usually trust my hunches

c) I can usually tell whether or not somebody is right

d) My first impressions of people are usually pretty accurate

e) It’s important to trust your feelings when making important decisions



If you scored 20 or more, then congratulations: your life has meaning.

Of course things aren’t quite that simple. But a recent study conducted at the University of Missouri found that people who gave higher scores on a short faith-in-intuition questionnaire (similar to the one above) were also more likely to strongly agree with statements such as: “My life has a clear sense of purpose.”

And this purpose doesn’t have to come from religion: while the study found that religious people were indeed more likely to feel that their lives had meaning, the relationship between following one’s gut and attributing meaning to life held true even for non-religious people.

Presumably for these people, whatever it is that gives their lives meaning – be it God or something else – also acts as a kind of invisible hand guiding their hunches and intuitions.



A fully referenced version of this article is available at benambridge.com. Order Psy-Q by Ben Ambridge (Profile Books, £8.99) for £6.99 at bookshop.theguardian.com