The Archbridge Institute’s Human Flourishing Lab is launching a new public education initiative called Head Out, a project dedicated to promoting an outward-directed approach to mental health and human flourishing.
Americans are more focused on mental health than ever before, yet rates of anxiety, depression, loneliness, and hopelessness continue to rise, especially among younger generations. At the same time, many of the traditional sources of meaning and connection that once grounded people’s lives have weakened, from community participation and religious involvement to family life.
Head Out makes the case that the best way to support mental health is through outward-directed, meaningful engagement with the world. Through research, articles, digital content, and educational resources, Head Out seeks to reframe public conversations around psychological health and flourishing.
Head Out is led by Archbridge’s Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, Clay Routledge. As an existential psychologist, Dr. Routledge has spent decades helping people reach their full potential and build meaningful lives. He has published more than 100 academic papers, co-edited three books, authored three books, and appeared in dozens of top media outlets. He is frequently invited to discuss his work on television, radio, podcast, and documentary programs. He is joined at Head Out by a team of psychology fellows and project manager Jenny Routledge.
Head Out is supported by the Archbridge Institute’s Human Flourishing Lab and a grant from the John Templeton Foundation.
On the importance of Head Out, Archbridge President & CEO Gonzalo Schwarz said:
“Head Out addresses one of the defining cultural challenges of our time. At Archbridge, we believe human flourishing depends not only on economic opportunity and strong institutions, but also on psychologically healthy citizens motivated by the pursuit of meaning, purpose, connection, and hope. This initiative brings rigorous psychological research into public conversations in a way that is practically relevant and meets people where they are in the pursuit of their fullest human potential.”
In this interview, Dr. Routledge shares the motivation behind Head Out and how the initiative supports Archbridge’s mission to lift barriers to human flourishing.
Americans are talking about mental health more than ever before, yet anxiety, depression, and loneliness continue to rise, especially among young people. Why do you think that is?
First, it is worth acknowledging the positive side of this story. Human progress has allowed us to focus more on our mental health because we are less worried about basic survival and physical safety. Increased mental health awareness has also reduced stigma and helped more people get the support they need. These are good developments. But something has gone wrong. We are spending too much time fixated on our mental states. We are treating normal levels of stress, anxiety, sadness, and self-doubt as indicative of serious mental illness. And by pushing people further inward, we are inadvertently undermining the outward action that supports psychological flourishing.
What makes Head Out different from other mental health campaigns?
I think there are a couple of things that set it apart. First, while we are starting to see more recognition that our culture is unintentionally making mental health problems worse, I haven’t seen a conceptually strong, evidence-based alternative. Head Out offers one. It’s not just a critique of the current approach. It’s a coherent framework for what to do instead, one that’s grounded in empirical research.
Second, Head Out puts existential psychology at the center. Meaning in life is one of the most powerful predictors of good mental health we know of. It protects against depression, anxiety, substance abuse, and suicide. In addition, when people are grappling with mental health problems, meaning helps them recover because of its motivational power. It gives people a reason to push forward, to invest in their health, to re-engage with the world. And yet meaning tends to be undervalued in mainstream mental health conversations. Head Out changes that.
Head Out promotes what you call an “outward mindset.” What does that actually mean in everyday life?
Self-consciousness is one of our greatest assets as a species. It lets us plan, reflect, learn from experience, and grow. But it also creates the potential for getting stuck in our own heads, cycling through fears, regrets, and self-doubts. The outward mindset is the idea that the best response to that is not more self-focus but more engagement with the world.
In everyday life, that can look like many things, from getting fit so you have the energy and health to be there for the people who matter most, to starting a business that makes life better in your community, to being the kind of friend, partner, or parent that other people can rely on. These things improve mental health through multiple pathways, but the deepest one is meaning. Outward action generates meaning, and meaning motivates more action and engagement. That virtuous cycle is the direct opposite of what an inward-focused culture tends to produce.
Who is Head Out designed to reach?
Anyone who cares about addressing our mental health problem. But we are especially interested in empowering young adults and teenagers. The narrative around younger generations tends to be pretty bleak, focused on their struggles and vulnerabilities and framing them as victims of forces beyond their control. That’s part of the problem. We want them to feel empowered and equipped with the knowledge they need to build psychologically healthy lives. We want them to understand what actually leads to meaning and flourishing, and to believe they are fully capable of getting there. That includes knowing when they need professional help, but critically, also knowing they have more power to help themselves than our culture is giving them credit for.
What kinds of resources and content will Head Out produce?
We are producing a range of content, from research-based educational resources to op-eds, newsletters, public talks, and media. The website, headoutworld.org, is where it all lives. The goal is to reach general audiences with research that is usually stuck behind academic paywalls or buried in journals and make it useful for individuals trying to improve their own lives, as well as parents, teachers, employers, community leaders, and anyone else trying to figure out how to best support mental health.
The Archbridge Institute emphasizes a holistic vision of human flourishing. How does Head Out support the three pillars of economics, psychology, and culture?
Mental health isn’t just a psychological issue. It touches everything. On the economic side, poor mental health reduces productivity and labor force participation, costs the economy hundreds of billions of dollars a year, and makes people less likely to take the kinds of risks involved in entrepreneurship and innovation.
On the cultural side, poor mental health erodes the social trust, cooperation, commitment to freedom, and hope for the future that are essential for human flourishing and progress. Head Out addresses the psychological root of a problem with consequences that reach into all three pillars. Healthy societies are built on healthy minds.
Head Out is organized around five forms of outward engagement: move, work, create, connect, and transcend. How do these activities support psychological flourishing?
The actions in each of these domains get people out of their own heads. That matters because unhealthy self-focus and rumination are major drivers of anxiety and depression. But it goes beyond just distraction. When people make progress on goals, develop mastery, and contribute to something beyond themselves, they generate meaning. And meaning is at the core of good mental health. It’s not just that these activities feel better in the moment. They build the sense that your life matters, that you are making a difference.
Despite a rise in material abundance over the past several decades, we have seen a decline in many of the traditional activities that create meaning. Today, people are less likely to get married, to have children, to participate in organized religion, or even to work in an office with other people. What message does Head Out have for young people amidst these cultural challenges?
Head Out is backed by modern empirical science, but in a way, it is a very retro idea. We still need what humans have always needed: to belong, to matter, and to contribute to something beyond ourselves. No amount of material comfort or technological convenience changes that. The message to young people is that a meaningful life is within their reach, and they have the agency to build it. That is something our culture isn’t telling them nearly enough.
As artificial intelligence and digital technology reshape work, relationships, and daily life, what are the enduring lessons for human flourishing?
Our research on historical nostalgia among Gen Z is actually hopeful on this front. Despite growing up as digital natives, young people are increasingly drawn to pre-digital products, traditions, and experiences. They aren’t rejecting technology. But I think at some level they recognize that something is being lost in lives lived through screens. They are reaching back for things that computer-mediated life has displaced. That instinct is very much aligned with what Head Out is about
Visit Head Out’s website to learn more and sign up for the Archbridge Connector, a free monthly newsletter with the latest research and insights on human flourishing.
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