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ObjectivesResearch has demonstrated sense of purpose predicts better health in older adulthood. However, work is limited with respect to understanding how experiencing a health event or illness diagnosis impacts older adults' sense of purpose.MethodThe current study employed a propensity score matching approach to compare older adults who did or did not experience an adverse health event on changes in sense of purpose across 3 waves of the Health and Retirement Study. Sense of purpose was assessed at each wave, and changes were compared between people who did versus did not experience one of 7 diagnoses and health events.ResultsWhen propensity score matching was employed, no differences in trajectories of change for sense of purpose were found with respect to all 7 events. Individual differences in trajectories, however, were evidenced across groups.DiscussionThe current findings suggest that even when health events impact older adults' physical functioning or place limitations on their activity, they may hold little ramifications for their sense of purpose. Future research should consider this potential for resilience, focusing on how adults compensate for losses.

Research into immigrant wellbeing and health has yielded evidence for both potential risks and the capacity for resilience of individuals moving to the United States. Limited research, though, has considered how immigrants may differ in their perceived commitment to a life direction and goals, known as sense of purpose. Moreover, research is needed on whether immigrants may be more likely to derive that purpose through social activism for change. The current study employed a nationwide sample of U. S. adults (N = 1973; 5.3% immigrants), who reported on their sense of purpose, activist purpose, self-rated health, and life satisfaction. Results indicated that immigrants did not significantly differ from native-born U. S. adults on levels for any of the primary variables. Sense of purpose was more strongly associated with life satisfaction for native-born than immigrant participants, although other associations were similar in magnitude across groups. Future research should further explore background predictors of sense of purpose among immigrant samples, as well as whether immigrants and native-born adults differ on alternative forms of purpose. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Immigrants face multiple forms of cultural stress that hold pernicious influences on their psychological well-being, including everyday discrimination, bicultural stressors, and negative context of reception from others. Research thus is needed to consider potential buffers and mitigating factors that may help immigrant adults in the face of cultural stress. The present studies evaluated a sense of purpose as one potential buffer. Method: Study 1 asked immigrant adults in the Unites States to complete measures of the three cultural stress indicators in addition to sense of purpose and measures of well-being (depressive symptoms, anxiety, stress, self-esteem, self-rated health). Multiple regression analyses examined whether sense of purpose moderated the influence of cultural stress on immigrant well-being. Study 2 randomly assigned immigrant participants receive an experimental condition that asked participants to imagine a common cultural stressor faced by immigrants. Multiple regression analyses tested whether sense of purpose operated differently on postscenario affect across the control and experimental conditions. Results: Study 1 found that all cultural stress indicators negatively correlated with psychological well-being and sense of purpose. However, sense of purpose did not significantly moderate these associations. Study 2 found that imagining the cultural stressor led to worse momentary affective well-being, whereas sense of purpose was associated with better well-being. Again, sense of purpose did not interact with the condition to predict the postscenario affect. Conclusions: Sense of purpose was consistently associated with better psychological well-being. However, little evidence was found that sense of purpose mitigates the ill effects of cultural stress for immigrant adults. Public Significance Statement: With immigration increasing worldwide, research is needed to understand which factors may help promote resilience and well-being among immigrants. The present study demonstrates that sense of purpose is linked to better immigrant well-being, but it may be at risk for immigrants who experience culturally relevant stressors. Future research is needed to help mitigate the risk of cultural stressors for immigrants, both with respect to their sense of purpose and well-being. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Conscientiousness and sense of purpose consistently predict health, wellbeing, and health behavior. However, it remains an open question whether they are unique or overlapping predictors of health and wellbeing. The current study considered this question using the MOSAiCH study, a nationally representative sample of 2305 Swiss adults (M : 52.33 years old; SD = 17.36). Participants reported on sense of purpose and conscientiousness, in addition to multiple health, wellbeing, and health behavior indicators (e.g. dietary practices, activity engagement, health conditions, psychological concerns, and doctor visits). Results found conscientiousness and sense of purpose were moderately associated with multiple health, wellbeing, and health behavior indicators. Bifactor modeling was employed to test the incremental validity of conscientiousness and sense of purpose, when accounting for their shared variance. The specific factor for purpose predicted outcomes even when accounting for conscientiousness. However, conscientiousness had little incremental validity over the general factor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given the developmental benefits associated with higher sense of purpose, past work has aimed to understand how experiences of adversity relate to sense of purpose. With a specific focus on experiences of adversity that may impact individuals from marginalized groups, past work has found that discrimination is related to lower sense of purpose in life, but that these effects are weaker for Black adults relative to White adults. The current research aims to extend past work by examining how and for whom discrimination is related to sense of purpose in life. Moreover, the current work also aimed to understand the extent to which sense of purpose spans across generations and whether there are generational differences in the relationship between discrimination and sense of purpose. Using data from the St. Louis Personality and Aging Network study, 822 parents (G1 participants) and 654 children (G2 participants) completed measures for sense of purpose, major experiences of discrimination, and personality traits. Results found mixed evidence for a relationship between discrimination and sense of purpose, with little evidence for consistent moderators. In addition, while the current work found no evidence of intergenerational associations for sense of purpose, results showed that discrimination was positively associated across generations, suggesting a potential for an intergenerational cycle of marginalization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sense of purpose is seen as a catalyst for successful ageing, predicting a wide range of health outcomes and mortality. However, its role in fostering subjective well-being during old age has received less attention, especially the bidirectional nature of this relationship. The present study examined how sense of purpose predicts and is predicted by subjective well-being in this life stage. Panel data from the Health and Retirement Study (N = 8980) were used, spanning three measurement occasions across eight years. Four subjective well-being indicators (life satisfaction, depression, positive- and negative affect) were modelled with purpose using (random-intercept) cross-lagged panel models to disentangle within-from between-person associations. We found moderate to strong correlated change and some evidence for directional associations between the constructs. Purpose predicted changes in all four subjective well-being markers, and these associations were generally stronger than the effects of subjective well-being on purpose. Within-person changes in sense of purpose predicted subsequent changes in life satisfaction and positive affect, but not in negative affect and depression. In sum, sense of purpose is associated with higher subjective well-being in old age, but efforts to maintain or increase older adults' sense of purpose may only improve positive components of subjective well-being. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sense of purpose, a consistent promoter of successful aging across the lifespan, has been shown in previous research to decline during older adulthood. As such, research is needed to understand how to inform policies around promoting a sense of purpose for older adults, and which adults may need more assistance on this front. One potential mechanism for lower purpose in older adulthood could be due to the more limited financial assets many face following retirement. As such, the current study investigated the cross-sectional associations between different kinds of financial assets and sense of purpose among older adults from the 2006 and 2008 waves of the Health and Retirement Study (n = 9,380). Sense of purpose as well as four financial assets were assessed: physical assets, retirement account assets, investment account assets, and debts. Findings indicated that greater physical assets and retirement account assets predicted a higher sense of purpose, while debt and investment account assets did not. Furthermore, there were no moderating effects of different grouping variables, such as retirement status, race, marital status, subjective health, or wave, on the associations between total net worth and sense of purpose. Findings are discussed regarding why net worth matters for all, and why certain assets may be more important than others when promoting a sense of purpose. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multiple studies have focused on the role of psychosocial factors as predictors of COVID-19 vaccination willingness and uptake, with less attention paid to whether vaccination itself could influence wellbeing. The current study evaluated this possibility with respect to sense of purpose, the perception one has goals and a direction in life, building on previous evidence this factor may influence vaccination willingness and decision-making. Across seven waves of monthly data from February to August 2021, participants (n = 2169, m age = 48.0 years) across Canada and the United States reported on their sense of purpose and vaccination status. Using piecewise regression models, results indicated that sense of purpose did not appear to fluctuate in the month prior to, during, or following COVID-19 vaccination. However, across most months of the survey, vaccinated participants did report greater sense of purpose relative to unvaccinated participants. These findings are discussed with respect to whether health behaviors, such as vaccination, should be viewed as behaviors indicative of leading a purposeful life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given the increased threats to health and well-being faced by transgender individuals, research is needed to understand potential protective factors. Recent work has suggested that a sense of purpose may be one of the health-promoting resources available to marginalized groups, and levels of purpose are often similar or even higher among these groups. However, research is limited regarding whether this factor manifests differently among transgender adults. The current study (n = 1968 U.S. adults; 4.3% identified as transgender) asked participants to complete surveys for sense of purpose, self-rated health, life satisfaction and the type of purposes they deemed important. The findings suggest no difference in levels of sense of purpose between transgender and non-transgender adults. Transgender adults reported slightly lower levels of importance across multiple purposes, which merits further investigation into whether they perceive greater obstacles toward those goals. Of central importance, sense of purpose positively correlated with self-rated health (r =.50) and life satisfaction for transgender adults (r =.77), at similar or even greater magnitudes than for the non-transgender adults. These results point to the potential of exploring sense of purpose as an intervention target for promoting transgender health and well-being, and future directions should focus on the multiple pathways by which transgender identity may influence purpose development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID‐19 pandemic brought new attention to the issues of food insecurity faced by individuals throughout the United States, a stressor exacerbated by disruptions to work status and supply chains. The burden of food insecurity likely carries consequences for whether individuals feel capable of pursuing their broad goals and life engagements; put differently, food insecurity may pose a threat to people perceiving a sense of purpose in life. The current study tested this claim across three samples taken during 2020 (n = 2009), 2021 (n = 1666), and 2022 (n = 1975). Participants completed inventories for perceived food insecurity, sense of purpose, depressive symptoms, and anxiety, among other measures. Results found consistent negative associations between food insecurity and sense of purpose across all three samples. In addition, food insecurity moderated associations between sense of purpose and depressive or anxiety symptoms. Sense of purpose was more strongly negatively associated with depressive and anxiety symptoms for those participants who reported no food insecurity. That said, sense of purpose remained negatively associated with psychological distress even among those reporting food insecurity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Individuals with a purpose in life tend to experience better health outcomes, in part because they engage in healthier lifestyle behaviors. However, it is unclear whether these associations are due to the sense of purpose, or if the form of purpose may also correlate with health indicators. The current study examined this claim, with regard to activist purpose, or a commitment to engaging in social activism and causes, given that this type of purpose may be especially vulnerable to health risks. In a cross-sectional study of 307 US adults (mean age: 38.1 years), participants completed surveys regarding their activist purpose, sense of purpose, health, and health behaviors. In addition, we asked participants about their other purpose orientations: prosocial, occupational, personal recognition, and creative purposes in life. The results suggested consistent evidence of positive associations between a sense of purpose, self-rated health, and health behaviors. The activist purpose levels were positively associated with a higher health behavior engagement, but not with the indices of self-rated health. Other purpose orientations exhibited similarly weak-to-null associations with health. The findings are discussed with regard to whether activist purpose should be viewed as health-promoting, and what future research should be conducted to evaluate this claim. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Past research has suggested that the path to purpose involves connections with people along the way. In support, sense of purpose appears higher amongst those adults with more positive social relationships and interactions. However, research has yet to consider whether associations between sense of purpose and social relationship variables differ across adulthood. The present study examined this claim using a sample of Swiss adults, who completed measures for sense of purpose, loneliness, received support, and provided support. A large, nationally representative sample of 2,312 Swiss adults (52.34 years old; SD = 17.35) completed these measures, as part of a larger survey. Local structural equation modeling was employed to estimate the means and associations of these constructs across adulthood. Sense of purpose was negatively associated with loneliness, but positively associated overall with both support variables. No evidence was found for age moderation for the association between sense of purpose and loneliness. However, moderation was evidenced insofar that sense of purpose was less associated with both support variables with age. Sense of purpose again appears related to more positive social well-being and relationships, and consistently linked to lower loneliness. The age moderation effects for purpose-support associations are discussed with respect to theories of adult development. Public Significance Statement: The present study helps advance our understanding of how closely social support and loneliness are tied to feeling purposeful and goal-directed across the adult years. Given the importance of sense of purpose for healthy aging, this work provides further insight into when social roles and interactions are more central to a sense of direction in life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Academic and lay interest has accrued over recent years with respect to how people develop a purpose in life. However, few theoretical models exist for understanding this developmental process as well as how to connect one's overarching purpose in life to their daily feelings of purposefulness. The current article presents the PATHS (Purpose As Trait, Habit, and State) model, borrowing from clinical and personality development literatures. This framework allows researchers to consider purpose as a more enduring life direction (trait level), as an automatized routine acting in accordance with one's goals (habit level), and as a more momentary reflection or feeling that one is engaged in purposeful pursuits (state level). Using this framework provides researchers with a valuable tool toward explaining how people progress toward purpose, via natural development or intervention, as well as the potential influences in this process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sense of purpose, or feeling that one has personally meaningful goals and directions guiding them through life, consistently predicts a variety of desirable well‐being, health, and social outcomes. However, work has been limited with respect to evaluating it as a predictor and promoter of romantic relationships or how purpose may develop in these contexts. For instance, healthy romantic relationships could also help individuals develop and maintain a higher sense of purpose. With cross‐sectional evidence finding positive associations between sense of purpose and romantic relationship commitment and satisfaction, the current study expanded on past work by using longitudinal data with three months between two measurement occasions (Time 1: N = 2243; Time 2: N = 1284) to evaluate whether sense of purpose predicted relationship status over time and how changes in relationship quality and sense of purpose were associated. Results showed that a greater sense of purpose predicted maintaining a romantic relationship but did not predict later romantic relationship quality, although higher romantic relationship quality predicted an increase in sense of purpose. Findings are discussed regarding why people with a higher sense of purpose may be more likely to stay in relationships as well as the role that positive romantic relationships may play in helping maintain a higher sense of purpose. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous research has demonstrated that retirees tend to report lower levels for sense of purpose compared to working adults. However, it remains unclear whether adults show differences in the extent to which they expect to be purposeful during retirement, and what that may mean for the propensity to plan for retirement. The current study examined this question in a cross-sectional sample of 492 adults (Age: M = 39.28, SD = 8.35) prior to retirement. Participants completed an adapted measure to capture expected purposeful engagement during retirement, along with sense of purpose, retirement planning, and the Big Five personality traits. Factor analyses and zero-order correlations suggested that purposeful retirement perceptions are related yet distinct from sense of purpose in general, and adults on average expect a moderately purposeful retirement. Purposeful retirement scores were associated with multiple retirement planning scales, and remained predictive of retirement preparation even when accounting for the Big Five and demographic factors. Adults differ in how purposeful they expect to be during their future retirement. Moreover, these differences may be a valuable consideration when understanding how to promote retirement planning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Sense of purpose has been associated with greater health and well-being, even in daily contexts. However, it is unclear whether effects would hold in daily life during COVID-19, when people may have difficulty seeing a path towards their life goals. Design: The current study investigated whether purposefulness predicted daily positive affect, negative affect, and physical symptoms. Participants (n = 831) reported on these variables during the first weeks of the COVID-19 response in North America. Main outcome measures: Participants completed daily surveys asking them for daily positive events, stressors, positive affect, negative affect, physical symptoms, and purposefulness. Results: Purposefulness at between- and within-person levels predicted less negative affect and physical symptoms, but more positive affect at the daily level. Between-person purposefulness interacted with positive events when predicting negative and positive affect, suggesting that purposeful people may be less reactive to positive events. However, between-person purposefulness also interacted with daily stressors, insofar that stressors predicted greater declines in positive affect for purposeful people. Conclusion: Being a purposeful person holds positive implications for daily health and well-being, even during the pandemic context. However, purposefulness may hold some consequences unique to the COVID-19 context, which merit attention in future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Sense of purpose predicts a wide array of positive health, cognitive, and well-being outcomes during older adulthood. However, work is limited regarding how social relations correspond to purposefulness in daily life. The current study explored daily social interactions as a route to daily purposefulness in older adults, using a measurement burst design.Methods: Older adults completed surveys for three 5-day bursts each spread 6 months apart (Mage = 70.75, SD = 7.23; N = 104).Results: Multilevel models demonstrated that on days when individuals reported more positive social interactions, they reported feeling more purposeful (est. = 0.39, 95% CI [0.28, 0.51]) when accounting for health, employment, and relationship status. Employment status moderated this association, as daily social interactions were more strongly associated with daily purpose for unemployed/retired individuals (est. = -0.23, 95% CI [-0.38, -0.08]).Conclusion: Positive social interactions thus may help older adults maintain purposefulness, particularly after retirement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Past research has demonstrated that university students with a stronger sense of purpose tend to fare better than their peers. However, work is needed to investigate the mechanisms and skills that may underlie these associations. The current studies employed two university student samples (total n = 412) and comprehensively investigated associations between sense of purpose and social-emotional-behavioral skills, using multiple purpose measures. Associations were relatively similar across measures and samples, and results suggested that sense of purpose was most robustly positively associated with self-management skills. Sense of purpose also was associated with better student wellbeing (life satisfaction, college satisfaction, and student connectedness), though it was inconsistently associated with reported likelihood of degree completion. Sense of purpose largely remained a significant correlate of student wellbeing, even when accounting for SEB skill domains, although some associations between purpose and wellbeing were reduced in magnitude. • Sense of purpose is associated with markers of academic success at university. • Sense of purpose is correlated with multiple social-emotional-behavioral skills. • Correlations were strongest for self-management skills. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While sense of purpose is a robust predictor of well-being, little work has considered whether the associations vary based on future time perspective. Exploring this possibility is important given that the extent to which one may pursue their life aims could be dependent upon how much time they feel that they have remaining. Using three samples (total n = 2333), the current study considered the association between sense of purpose and future time perspective. Moderation tests also examined whether the associations between sense of purpose and three well-being components (positive affect, negative affect, life satisfaction) differed as a function of future time perspective. Across all three studies, people with a broader time perspective reported a higher sense of purpose. Both constructs predicted greater well-being, even after accounting for chronological age. Future time perspective moderated the associations between sense of purpose and well-being, such that the negative association between sense of purpose and negative affect was stronger for those with a broader time perspective and the positive association between sense of purpose and life satisfaction was stronger for those with a limited time perspective. The well-being benefits associated with sense of purpose in adulthood may depend on future time perspective. Findings are discussed in the context of how purpose can be harnessed to enhance well-being even when older adults feel that their time left is limited. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Sense of purpose, or the extent to which one perceives their lives to have meaningful goals and directions, may aid in initiating satisfying and stable new connections while positively maintaining old ones for college students. Purpose: The current study sought to evaluate how a college students' sense of purpose during their first week of college may predict their satisfaction with different relationship types throughout their first semester of university. Research Design: At the beginning of the semester, students reported their sense of purpose, and every week of the semester they reported their weekly relationship satisfaction across a variety of domains (i.e., parents, home friends, university friends, roommates, resident assistants, and significant others). Study Sample: The current study followed-up first year college students (n = 364) from a private Midwestern university who all participated in the same Psychology of Young Adulthood class. Data Analysis: Multilevel models were conducted to evaluate mean-level relationship satisfaction trajectories throughout the first semester and whether sense of purpose predicted those trajectories when accounting for gender and the Big Five personality traits. Results: Friendships with home friends and university friends as well as parental relationships increased in satisfaction during the first semester, while relationships with roommates and resident assistants decreased. Furthermore, a higher sense of purpose was associated with greater relationship satisfaction with university friends and parents, even when accounting for the Big Five personality traits, as well as greater relationship satisfaction stability. Conclusions: Findings paint a nuanced and equivocal nature of relationships during the first semester, and point to the need to better understand how and when sense of purpose does or does not yield positive relationships over time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Everyday discrimination holds pernicious effects across most aspects of health, including a pronounced stress response. However, work is needed on when discrimination predicts sleep outcomes, with respect to potential moderators of these associations.Purpose: The current study sought to advance the past literature by examining the associations between everyday discrimination and sleep outcomes in an ethnically diverse sample, allowing tests of moderation by ethnic group. We also examined the role of sense of purpose, a potential resilience factor, as another moderator.Methods: Participants in the Hawaii Longitudinal Study of Personality and Health (n = 758; 52.8% female; mage: 60 years, sd = 2.03) completed assessments for everyday discrimination, sleep duration, daytime dysfunction due to sleep, sleep quality, and sense of purpose.Results: In the full sample, everyday discrimination was negatively associated with sleep duration, sleep quality, and sense of purpose, while positively associated with daytime dysfunction due to sleep. The associations were similar in magnitude across ethnic groups (Native Hawaiian, White/Caucasian, Japanese/Japanese-American), and were not moderated by sense of purpose, a potential resilience factor.Conclusions: The ill-effects on health due to everyday discrimination may operate in part on its role in disrupting sleep, an issue that appears to similarly impact several groups. The current research extends these findings to underrepresented groups in the discrimination and sleep literature. Future research is needed to better disentangle the day-to-day associations between sleep and discrimination, and identify which sources of discrimination may be most problematic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Having supportive others appears valuable for developing a purpose, at least during adolescence and young adulthood. However, work has yet to consider whether sense of purpose and social support change in tandem or predict one another during older adulthood. Using a subsample (N = 7,452) of older adults from the Health and Retirement Study, we estimate the associations of purpose in life to social support and social strain in four domains (spouses/partners, children, family, friends) using bivariate growth models. Participants provided responses at three assessment occasions, 4 years apart. Analyses controlled for social contact frequency to focus on the unique role of supportive relationships. Initial levels of support correlated positively with levels for sense of purpose, while strain was negatively associated with purpose. Moreover, with the exception of family support, changes in sense of purpose were correlated with changes in support and strain in the same direction across domains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives Although researchers have linked sense of purpose to working status, there are few studies examining how specific characteristics of work may correlate with sense of purpose. The aim of the current study is to extend prior research by assessing the degree to which objective and subjective forms of career success—occupational prestige and work satisfaction—are associated with levels of and changes in sense of purpose. Methods Participants were part of the Rochester Adult Longitudinal Study (N = 307), which contains multiple cohorts of participants each assessed at multiple waves (full age range: 42–71). We used cross-lagged modeling to test the relationships in our model. Results Occupational prestige was not associated with sense of purpose levels and change. However, work satisfaction was positively associated with higher levels of sense of purpose initially, and there was evidence that changes in the 2 constructs were positively correlated. Discussion These findings suggest that subjective career success may be more important for sense of purpose than more objective indicators. Findings are discussed with respect to study limitations and guidance for future researchers using secondary data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The degree to which individuals engage in leisure activities has been shown to predict well-being in older adults, but it is not known whether such activities may help older adults maintain purposefulness into retirement. The current study sought to address whether activity engagement is associated with purpose in life and whether this association differs based on retirement status. We used data from three waves of the Health and Retirement Study between 2008 and 2016. Multilevel growth models accounted for both within- and between-person effects of leisure activity participation and retirement status on change in sense of purpose in life. Participants reported higher sense of purpose on occasions when they engaged more in leisure activities, and more active participants exhibited less decline in purpose over time. Retired individuals showed steeper declines in sense of purpose, but this effect was mitigated among participants reporting greater activity engagement. Leisure activity participation may help to support sense of purpose in life, particularly among retired individuals. These findings underscore the potential for leisure activity interventions to help older adults compensate for loss of work-related roles and maintain purposefulness into retirement. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current studies investigated the extent that sense of purpose is associated with desirable relationship variables, such as relationship satisfaction, relationship commitment, perceived quality of alternatives, and investment size. Data were collected from two online surveys of 1,001 and 1,594 participants in relationships (Study 1: M = 46.68, SD = 15.77, range = 18–86; Study 2: M = 52.52, SD = 16.05, range = 18–91). Study 1 found that sense of purpose was positively associated with relationship satisfaction, commitment, and negatively associated with the perception that one's partner was preferable to alternatives. When controlling for affective well-being and the Big Five personality traits, sense of purpose was still associated with relationship commitment and the perception that one's partner was preferable to alternatives. Study 2 found that sense of purpose was positively associated with relationship satisfaction, commitment, and investment size (which was exclusively assessed in Study 2), but it was not significantly associated with perceived quality of alternatives. These associations held when controlling for affective well-being and the Big Five personality traits. Across both studies, age did not consistently moderate the associations between sense of purpose and relationship satisfaction, commitment, and perceived quality of alternatives. These studies suggest that sense of purpose and aspects of relationship quality are positively associated across adulthood. Findings are discussed with respect to how purpose may be considered in future close relationship research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Researchers have called for gerontologists to spend greater attention on promoting happiness in older adulthood, a point aligned with the general public's interest in finding the keys to being happy later in life. However, targeting and even defining happiness comes with several caveats and challenges, leaving researchers to make difficult decisions regarding measurement and intervention strategies. Instead, the current commentary suggests that gerontology interventions may fare better if researchers focus on specific components of positive psychological functioning. We present sense of purpose and life enjoyment as examples of two such components, and note the potential merit in developing these more focussed intervention programmes. As such, the commentary suggests the value of moving beyond targeting happiness when developing intervention programmes for older adult participants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Having a sense of purpose is associated with a wide variety of positive health outcomes, largely because purposeful individuals appear to take better care of themselves physically. However, work is limited regarding the role of purpose during health crises, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. The current cross-sectional study investigated whether having a sense of purpose was associated COVID-19 vaccination rates and willingness, among a Swiss adult sample (n = 2328, Mean = 52.33 years), after accounting for participants' trust in different institutions. Results found that adults with higher levels of institutional trust were more likely to be vaccinated (r s range from 0.06 to 0.13) or were willing to do so (r s range from 0.22 to 0.39). Sense of purpose was associated modestly with greater vaccination status (r = 0.06). However, sense of purpose moderated several associations between trust and vaccination outcomes. Namely, sense of purpose was associated with greater likelihood for vaccination when individuals reported greater trust in university research centers and political institutions. Findings are discussed with respect to how they shape our understanding of purpose-health associations. • Sense of purpose and institutional trust correlated with COVID-19 vaccination rates. • Sense of purpose was more influential when participants trusted institutions. • Purposeful people may enact health behaviors more when they trust them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the clear public health significance of herd immunity to COVID-19, a host of individual differences influence willingness to get vaccinated. One factor likely to motivate individuals is the extent they have a sense of purpose in life, based on the health correlates of purpose and purposeful individuals' desire to return to their pre-pandemic environments. The current study examined sense of purpose as a predictor of COVID-19 vaccination willingness in the United States immediately following the initial approval of a COVID-19 vaccine in the United States in 2020. A nationwide sample of U. S. adults (N = 2009) completed a poll including information on their sense of purpose in life, demographic factors, and depressive symptoms, immediately following the initial approval of a COVID-19 vaccine in the United States in 2020. In addition, they reported on how willing they would be to get the vaccine, assuming that the costs would be covered, as well as their motivations to get the vaccine. Multiple regression analyses found that sense of purpose predicted greater willingness to get vaccinated, even when accounting for demographic factors, political affiliation, and psychological wellbeing. Adults higher on sense of purpose reported greater importance of getting the vaccine for personal health, the health of others, and to return to regular activities. Exploratory analyses also suggest that purpose may provide a stronger impetus to vaccinate among those in age groups associated with lower risk for severe COVID-19 complications. Conclusions : Although cross-sectional in nature, the current findings suggest sense of purpose in life may be an important factor in encouraging vaccination. Implications are discussed regarding how purposeful messaging may yield greater vaccination rates among individuals who otherwise may be less motivated due to health concerns. • Leaders have invoked purpose and common purpose in efforts to increase vaccination. • Results suggest purposeful adults indeed are more willing to get a COVID-19 vaccine. • Findings held when controlling for predictors of vaccine willingness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Different elements of sense of purpose vary in daily life to different extents. • Meaningful activity engagement was more variable from day to day than feeling progress toward one's life goals. • Fluctuations in sense of purpose are more strongly tied to fluctuations in positive affect than negative affect. • Age and trait-level sense of purpose levels were not tied to greater variability in sense of purpose. Sense of purpose refers to the extent to which one feels that they have personally meaningful goals and directions guiding them through life. Though this construct predicts a host of benefits, little is known regarding the extent to which sense of purpose fluctuates within an individual and the affective changes tied to those fluctuations. The current study uses daily diary data to addresses this gap by exploring (1) how much sense of purpose and different components of purpose fluctuate from one day to the next, (2) the extent to which these fluctuations correlate with positive and negative affect, and (3) whether dispositional sense of purpose and age correlate with greater variability. Participants (N = 354) reported on their sense of purpose and positive and negative affect every day for 10 days. Results suggest that approximately 45–61 % of the variability in sense of purpose scores occurs between-person depending on how it is assessed. Furthermore, the within-person variability in sense of purpose is more strongly correlated with changes in positive affect relative to negative affect. Finally, higher levels of dispositional sense of purpose and age do not appear to be associated with how much variability an individual experiences in their purposefulness from one day to next. The discussion focuses on what these findings mean for the trait-like nature of sense of purpose, short-term sense of purpose measurement, lifespan development, and intervention efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the value of sense of purpose during older adulthood, this construct often declines with age. With some older adults reconsidering the relevance of purpose later in life, the measurement of purpose may suffer from variance issues with age. The current study investigated whether sense of purpose functions similarly across ages and evaluated if the predictive power of purpose on mental, physical, cognitive, and financial outcomes changes when accounting for a less age-affected measurement structure. Utilizing data from two nationwide panel studies (Health and Retirement Study: n = 14,481; Midlife in the United States: n = 4,030), the current study conducted local structural equation modeling and found two factors for the positively and negatively valenced purpose items in the Purpose in Life subscale (Ryff, 1989), deemed the purposeful and purposeless factor. These factors become less associated with each other at higher ages. When reproducing past findings with this two-factor structure, the current study found that the purposeful and purposeless factors predicted these outcomes in the same direction as would be suggested by past research, but the magnitude of these effects differed for some outcomes. The discussion focuses on the implications of what this means for our understanding of sense of purpose across the lifespan. Public Significance Statement: Sense of purpose (i.e., the extent to which one feels that one has personally meaningful goals and directions guiding one through life) is a robust predictor of healthy aging. However, the current study highlights that the measurement of this construct may become more complicated as people age, which has implications for predicting certain well-being and cognitive functioning outcomes in the older sample. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Having a sense of purpose in life is fundamental to psychological and physical well-being. Despite the benefits of purpose, it may be difficult to hold onto purpose as people age. The present research addressed four aims: (1) to estimate average change in sense of purpose during midlife; (2) to test associations between purpose levels and later physical health; (3) to test associations between purpose change and later physical health; (4) to examine the cross-cultural generalizability of findings.Methods: We used reliable change indices to estimate change in sense of purpose during midlife in three prospective cohorts: one comprised predominately of White participants in the U.S. (N = 2692), a second predominately of African American participants in the U.S. (N = 248), and a third of Japanese participants in Tokyo (N = 644). Next, we used linear regression to examine associations between purpose levels and purpose change and later self-reported general health and chronic health conditions.Results: At the group level, purpose declined slightly across time (Cohen's ds = -0.08 to -0.17). At the individual level, 10-14% of participants reliably decreased in purpose, whereas only 6-8% of participants reliably increased in purpose. Consistent with our preregistered hypotheses, higher purpose levels predicted better health in the two larger samples (βs = 0.10-0.18, small effects) and more positive purpose change predicted better health in all three samples (βs = 0.08--0.22., small to medium effects).Conclusion: Together, these findings suggest that both having a sense of purpose and holding onto it may be important for physical health in middle to older adulthood. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sense of purpose is a salient predictor of health outcomes, at least partially because individuals with a higher sense of purpose appear to engage in healthier lifestyle behaviors. Yet, little work has considered the role that greater physical activity may play in allowing individuals to maintain or develop a higher sense of purpose. Using five waves of monthly data (total n = 2337), the current study investigates the bi-directional association between sense of purpose and monthly reports of average time spent per day in moderate and vigorous physical activity utilizing Random Intercept Cross-Lagged Panel models. Findings suggested differences based on physical activity intensity. For moderate physical activity, concurrent within-person associations revealed that during months when sense of purpose was higher relative to a person's usual level, they also spent more time than usual engaging in moderate physical activity. Bi-directional cross-lagged effects indicated that higher sense of purpose predicted more next-month moderate physical activity, and vice versa. Only between-person associations were evident for vigorous physical activity, such that people with a higher sense of purpose on average spent more time in vigorous physical activity on average. The discussion focuses on the methodological advances of the current study, as well as implications for future research. • Purpose and moderate physical activity (e.g., walking) are associated within-person. • Purpose and vigorous physical activity (e.g., running) are associated between-person. • The associations between sense of purpose and physical activity do not differ based on age. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]