Psychology Professor, Coauthor Explore 'The Quest for Significance'

Many people might say they understand and identify with the human need to belong and to feel important. But few people would say they understand the motivations of conspiracy theorists and other “extremists.” A new book offers a better understanding of how the same universal need to belong and feel significant drives both our daily efforts to succeed, contribute, and build a just society—and to commit the atrocities of wars, cruelty and inhumanity.

Distinguished University Professor Arie Kruglanski and journalist and longtime CBS News anchor Dan Raviv explore how the natural desire for belonging and recognition can take both these turns in “The Quest for Significance: Harnessing the Need that Makes the World Go Round” (Routledge, 2025).

A Holocaust survivor, Kruglanski has dedicated his life’s work to understanding the motivations of terrorists and violent actors, and exploring and promoting ways to curb extremism. This new book offers practical insight for how we can foster a more inclusive society that helps people channel their desire for belonging in more positive directions.

Whether someone shares conspiracy theories online and with their friends and family, joins a cult, adheres to strict religious views and practices, or is recruited by a terrorist organization such as Isis or Al Qaeda, Kruglanski says the majority of people exhibiting extremist behaviors have something in common: they long for a sense of significance.

“When I read about someone behaving in an extremist manner, I say, ‘here is this quest for significance; people have the quest for dignity, for honor, for respect,’” Kruglanski said.

In interviews, extremists and violent actors have described their goals of pursuing vengeance, admiration of their leader, seeking to become a hero, and the desire to obtain the rewards of an afterlife. Kruglanski has studied these interviews and struggled to understand the interviewees’ varied motivations, only to find that the profound commonality was what he calls “the human quest for significance.” A quest, uncomfortably enough, that most of us can relate to.

“This motivation for significance is hardly unique to extremists and terrorists, and as a matter of fact, it’s something that all of us have on a daily, everyday basis,” Kruglanski said. “We feel good when somebody likes us, or likes our ideas. We feel good when we get a ‘yes’ on a job offer or a marriage proposal. These are all things that make us feel that we matter.”

On the other side of the coin, feelings of being rejected, ignored, excluded, or “ghosted” can make people feel diminished, belittled or humiliated. Rejection and feelings of insignificance also drive people to seek out fringe groups, online extremist communities or charismatic cult leaders who some feel offer understanding, belonging, and a restored sense of dignity.

On a more global scale, Kruglanski reflects that wars or acts of state aggression can often be a form of “overcompensation” for a loss of national pride or national significance. Thus, the quest for significance is not just a personal one, but can be a national one—and national feelings can have global repercussions.

“When I reflect on Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, I see that he wanted to restore the glory of the superpower that the Soviet Union used to be,” Kruglanski said. “He saw the lost status of the Soviet Union as the greatest catastrophe of the 20th century, so he is in a way working to restore the glory of the Russian empire.”

Closer to home, Kruglanski said that much of the anti-immigrant sentiment in the United States can ultimately lead back to personal feelings of belonging that are not being met, making it easier for people to want to belong to one group, and to see people outside of that group as “others.”

“You protect your groups, and that feels good, it feels like you are doing something worthwhile. Those who are opposing immigrants and discriminate against minorities may feel they are doing it for lofty ideals, for America, for ‘king and country.’ They do not realize that this narrative is but the means to satisfy their own quest for significance. And why this is important is because there are alternative ways to regain that sense of significance,” Kruglanski said. “We can take a step back and examine positive and healthy ways to find belonging and acceptance without creating divisions.”

Given the biological nature of these impulses, their evolutionary origins—and the harm they can lead us to—how do we channel the quest for significance into a productive human journey, and how do we avoid the extremist pitfalls of feeling insignificant?

“We need to cultivate an awareness of these feelings, and the harm they can do us if we choose a destructive path,” Kruglanski said. “A greater understanding of the psychology of acceptance and belonging can help restore a sense of civility, empathy and openness to our actions. Our actions and understanding can help people feel more valued, more included.”

On a societal level, we can also reevaluate norms, values, and widely-accepted points of pride.

“In our society, we don’t just want to belong, we want to stand out. We reward the privileged individuals who make extraordinary contributions to ‘the group.’ We revere heroes and celebrities,” Kruglanski said. “But we also respect wealthy people, because in our materialistic society, wealth is given value. We ask how much a person is ‘worth,’ and we mean how much money they have. We can question and reframe those social values. We can perhaps find more inclusive and less materialistic ways to express worth.”

Helping people to make transitions from one stage of life to another is also important, such as when a veteran returns to civilian life, or when parents transition to having an “empty nest.”

“We can listen to people, and find ways to help them retain or regain feelings of significance when they make changes in their lives,” Kruglanski said. “When we approach people with care and civility, when we make them feel respected and appreciated, they are more likely to make positive contributions to society, and they are less likely to be susceptible to conspiracy theories or other extremist groups and violent behaviors.”

Kruglanski noted that he and his coauthor are exploring significance and belonging from a psychological perspective. While this might be a new perspective for people to consider, it builds on philosophies and religious teachings they thinkers articulated over millennia.

“The foundation of our understanding of human rights and the foundation of our civil society, in many ways, is understanding this quest for significance and ‘mattering.’ Philosophers have talked about it, from Aristotle, through the Stoics, through Cicero, through Saint Thomas Aquinas. All the way through Immanuel Kant and John Locke, great thinkers have talked about it. We offer the psychological view, based on rigorous contemporary research,” Kruglanski said.

Published on Thu, May 15, 2025 - 9:50AM