Research Fields

Health Psychology; Positive Psychology

Research Interests

Positive psychological resources and the promotion of mental and physical health, with a particular focus on the role of meaning in life and other positive psychological resources in stress coping and health behaviors.

Education experience

2011-2016 Ph.D. School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences, Peking University

2007-2011 B.A. (Second Degree) School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences, Peking University

2006-2011 B.A. School of Nursing, Peking University2011-2016 Ph.D. School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences, Peking University

2007-2011 B.A. (Second Degree) School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences, Peking University

2006-2011 B.A. School of Nursing, Peking University

Work experience

2026.08–Present Department of Medical Psychology, School of Health Humanities, Peking University; Associate Professor with Tenure,

2020.10-2026.07 Department of Medical Psychology, School of Health Humanities, Peking University Assistant Professor

2016.7-2020.9 Department of Psychology, School of Sociology, China University of Political Science and Law Lecturer, Associate Professor

Publications (First- or Corresponding-Author Publications in the Past Five Years)

1. Liu, Y., Wen, J., Cao, R., & Miao, M.* (2026). Unlocking Action: Meaning in Life Alleviating Exercise Procrastination Through Positive Affect and Outcome Focus. Journal of Happiness Studies, 27(4), 50.

2. Wen, J., Huang, Y., & Miao, M.* (2026). Mapping the symptom networks of problematic internet use subtypes: An integrated latent profile and network analysis. Addictive Behaviors, 108726.

3. Zhou, Z., He, Q., Qi, W., & Miao, M.* (2026). Longitudinal Associations Between Meaning in Life and Health Behavior Procrastination Among Chinese Medical Undergraduates: A Three-Wave Cross-Lagged Study. Journal of Pacific Rim Psychology, 20, 18344909261478831.

4. Miao, M., Wen, J., Cao, R., Jin, S., & Gan, Y. (2025). Self-Compassion Among Chinese Adolescents: Internal Structure, Latent Profiles, and Its Longitudinal Association with Meaning in Life. Mindfulness, 16(9), 2586-2601.

5. Miao, M.*, Wen, J., & Liu, Y. (2025). From procrastination to action: The role of meaning in life in promoting physical activity. Personality and individual differences, 246, 113330.

6. Wen, J., Inauen, J., & Miao, M. * (2025). Negative Affect and Emotional Eating: Daily Dynamics and Their Links to Difficulties in Emotional Regulation. Appetite, 108049.

7. Qi, W. G., Wen, J., Zhou, Z., & Miao, M.* (2025).  Longitudinal associations between psychological flexibility and inflexibility dimensions: A cross-lagged panel network analysis. Journal of contextual behavioral science, 35, 100877.

8. Wen, J., Liu, Y., Cao, R., Qi, W., & Miao, M.* (2025). From repetition to habit: how variability in daily physical activity relates to physical activity habits, Psychology & Health, 41:10, 1578-1597.

9. He, Y., Wen, J., Liu, F., Zhou, C., Pan, Q., Qin, X., & Miao, M.* (2025). Mapping the links between problematic smartphone use, exercise procrastination, and self-control: a network analysis. BMC Psychology, 13(1), 702-710.

10. Miao, M.*, & Cao, R. (2024). Mutually beneficial relationship between meaning in life and resilience. Current Opinion in Behavioral Sciences, 58, 101409.

11. Miao, M., Wen, J., Gan, Y., Edwards, M. E., & King, L. A. (2024). The Central Role of Daily Hopeful Feelings in Predicting Well-Being: A Network Perspective. Journal of Personality.

12. Miao, M., Chen, Y., Zhou, Z., Wen, J., & Zheng, L. (2024). Procrastination in the Intention–Behaviour gap: Exercise procrastination and the moderating role of emotion. Psychology of sport and exercise, 74, 102672.

13. Miao, M., Zhou, Z., Qi, W., & Zheng, L. (2024). The mediating role of hope in the relationship between benefit finding and anxiety: Insights from the COVID-19 pandemic. Anxiety, Stress, and Coping, 37(6), 794-810.

14. Wen, J., Wang, W., Liu, K., Sun, X., Zhou, J., Hu, H., Liang, J., Bi, X., Li, R. *, & Miao, M.* (2024). The psychological side of menopause: Evidence from the comorbidity network of menopausal, anxiety, and depressive symptoms. Menopause (New York, N.Y.), 31(10), 897–904.

15. Wen, J., Wang, G., & Miao, M.* (2024). The link between anger and reactive aggression: Insights into anger rumination. Aggressive Behavior, 50(3), e22157-e22157.

16. Zhou, Z., Qi, W., He, Q., Wen, J., & Miao, M.* (2024). Which One is the Best for Evaluating the Multidimensional Structure of Meaning in Life Among Chinese: A Comparison of Three Multidimensional Scales. Applied Research in Quality of Life, 19(4), 1791–1810.

17. Liu, S., & Miao, M.* (2024). Observing Others' Workouts on Social Network Sites Improves the Observer's Physical Activity: A Moderated-Mediation Model. Health communication, 39(12), 2589–2597.

18. Liu, S., & Miao, M.* (2024). More future-oriented, more physically active: the mediating role of physical activity intentions and the moderating role of societal injunctive norms. Current psychology, 43(23), 20407–20416.

19. Wang, L.#, Miao, M.#, Zheng, L., Wu, S., & Shi, S. (2024). Fit effect of health regulatory focus on exercise and healthy diet: Asymmetric moderating role of scarcity mindset. International journal of behavioral medicine.

20. Jin, S., Liu, J., & Miao, M*. (2023). Family incivility impedes interpersonal adaptation and increases loneliness in adolescents: Self-compassion as a mediator. Mindfulness, 14(8), 2014-2025.

21. Wen, J., Huang, Y., Liu, G., & Miao, M*. (2023). The nature of nomophobia and its associations with contents of smartphone use and fear of missing out: A network perspective. Telematics and Informatics, 82.

22. Qi, W., Xia, Y., Miao, M.*, & Gan, Y.* (2023). One meaning for two persons: An actor-partner interdependence model analysis of meaning in life, anxiety, and depression among rehabilitation patients and caregivers. Journal of the American Medical Directors Association, 24(7), 1054-1060.

23. Zheng, L., Peng, B., Ye, C., Zhang, X., Qi, W., & Miao, M* (2023). Like parent, like offspring: Intergenerational association of parental scarcity mindset with offspring's cooperative behaviors. PsyCh Journal, 12(3), 399–407.

24. Qi W, Zhou Z, Miao M*. (2023). Quadripartite existential meaning among Chinese: Internal conceptual structure and reciprocating relationship with psychological flexibility and inflexibility. Personality and Individual Differences, 202, 111961.

25. Miao M, Zheng L*, Wen J, Jin S, Gan Y. (2022). Coping with coronavirus disease 2019: Relationships between coping strategies, benefit finding and well‐being. Stress and Health, 38(1): 47-56.

26. Zheng L, Cai J, Wang F, Ruan C, Xu M, Miao M*. (2022). How Health-Related Misinformation Spreads Across the Internet: Evidence for the "Typhoon Eye" Effect. Cyberpsychology Behavior and Social Networking, 25(10): 641-648.

27. Jin S, Zheng L, Wen J, Miao M*. (2022). The relationship between active coping and hope during the COVID-19 pandemic: The mediating role of meaning in life. Journal of Health Psychology, 27(12): 2685-2695.

28. Jin S, Miao M*. (2022). Family Incivility and Cyberbullying Perpetration Among College Students: Negative Affect as a Mediator and Dispositional Mindfulness as a Moderator. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 37(23-24), NP21826-NP21849.

29. Zhou Z, Zheng L, Qi W, Miao M*. (2022). Finding meaning from the present and future: The mediating role of meaning in life between temporal focus and mental health. Journal of Pacific Rim Psychology, 16, 183449092211387.

30. Wen J, Miao M*. (2022). Relationships Between Meaning in Life, Positive and Negative Affect, and Eating Behaviors: A Daily Diary Study. Journal of Happiness Studies, 23(4), 1315-1331.

31. Miao, M., Zheng, L., & Gan, Y. (2021). Future-oriented function of meaning in life: Promoting hope via future temporal focus. Personality and Individual Differences, 179, 110897.

32. He, Y., Liu, Y., Dong, K., Su, J., Zhang, H., & Miao, M.* (2025). The relationships of empathy with meaning in life and altruistic behavior among medical students. Chinese Mental Health Journal, 39(11), 1007–1012. [In Chinese]

33. Miao, M.*, Zhou, Z., Zhong, S., He, Q., & Qi, W. (2024). Translation and validation of the Chinese version of the Three-Dimensional Meaning in Life Scale. Acta Scientiarum Naturalium Universitatis Pekinensis, 60(1), 188–194. [In Chinese]

34. Miao Miao, Zheng Lei, Jin Shuai, Wen Jie, Gan Yi-qun*. (2021). Development of the Benefit Finding from Epidemic Scale. Chinese Journal of Clinical Psychology, 29(03), 529-533+538. [In Chinese]

35. Miao Miao, Gan Yi-qun*. (2021). The Predictive Effects of Presence of Meaning in Life on Future-Oriented Coping: The Chain Mediating Role of Positive Affect and Resource Accumulation. Studies of Psychology and Behavior, 19(03): 403-409. [In Chinese]

36. Li Xue-ying，Mao Kang-na，Mi Xiao-yi，Gao Ling-ling，Yang Xiao，Tao Hui-fen，Zhang Ying-wu，Chen Jing，Wang Xing，Shen Li-juan，Yuan Jie-ling，Miao Miao*，Zhou Hong*. (2021). Reliability and validity of the Chinese version of parenting sense of competence scale in mothers of preschool children. Journal of Peking University (Health Sciences), 53(03): 479-484. [In Chinese]