Arthur C. BrooksThe Art and Science of Happiness

The biggest predictor of depression and anxiety in young people today is a sense that life has no me

28 Apr 2026 · 1 min

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In this brief YouTube excerpt, Arthur C. Brooks argues that the leading predictor of depression and anxiety among people under 30 is a sense that life lacks meaning. He notes a generational shift after 2008 toward increasing difficulty in finding purpose. To address this, Brooks poses three foundational questions—'What is the meaning of life?', 'What is the meaning of meaning?', and 'Where do you find it?'—and introduces a six‑part, six‑month program outlined in his book designed to help listeners discover and live with meaning, thereby reducing mental‑health distress.

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The number one predictor of depression and anxiety for people under 30 today is believing that their life is meaningless, that they don't know what they're meant to do. Now that's a big issue, man. And a lot of us kind of wonder about that sometimes, but when a whole generation suddenly after 2008 starts to find it harder and harder to find the meaning of their lives, something's going on. So I had three questions. What is the meaning of life? What's the meaning of meaning? Number two, where do you find it? And how do you live differently so you have the presence of meaning in your life? And this book is the 6-part method in 6 months to solving that problem.