ArticleJournal of psychosomatic research2015
Purpose in life predicts allostatic load ten years later.
Article in Journal of psychosomatic research, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 64 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
64 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Purpose in life and stress: An individual-participant meta-analysis of 16 samples.Journal of affective disorders · 2024Pooled it
- Purpose in Life in Older Adults: A Systematic Review on Conceptualization, Measures, and Determinants.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Pooled it
- Discordance in gender role attitudes between spouses and its relationship with the risk biomarkers of cardiovascular diseases: a couple-level analysis.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- The role of brain health and resilience in reshaping trajectories of late-life neuropsychiatric disorders.Neuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology · 2026Review
- Allostatic load profiles, resilience, and psychosocial adaptation in young adults.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Article
- Stress, Well-Being, and Reproduction in Wildlife.Advances in experimental medicine and biology · 2026Review
- Disparities in Allostatic Load Among Different Races: A Comprehensive Scoping Review.Journal of racial and ethnic health disparities · 2025Review
- Sustained Purpose in Life is Associated With Slower Cognitive Decline in Older Adults: A Longitudinal Analysis With a Diverse National Sample.The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences · 2025Article
- Race Differences in Purpose in Life Among Family Caregivers: Findings From the Caregiving Transitions Study.Journal of applied gerontology : the official journal of the Southern Gerontological Society · 2025Article
- Identifying childhood correlates of adult purpose and meaning across 22 countries (Global Flourishing Study).Npj mental health research · 2025Article
- Analytic methodology for demographic variation analyses for wave 1 of the global flourishing study.BMC global and public health · 2025Article
- Exploring dental professionals' perceptions of resilience to dental environment stress: a qualitative study.British dental journal · 2025Article
- Caregiver burden and risk of epithelial ovarian cancer in the Nurses' Health Studies.American journal of epidemiology · 2025Article
- Volunteering and Risk of Heart Attack in Later Life: The Moderating Role of Purpose in Life?Research on aging · 2025Article
- Purpose in Life and Stress Reactivity.Methods in molecular biology (Clifton, N.J.) · 2025Article
- Quick accomplishment and responsiveness were associated with a lower risk of mortality from cardiovascular disease among Japanese older men: the Japan Collaborative Cohort Study.Environmental health and preventive medicine · 2025Article
- The psychosocial anti-inflammatories: Sense of control, purpose in life, and social support in relation to inflammation, functional health and chronic conditions in adulthood.Journal of psychosomatic research · 2024Article
- Affect regulation and allostatic load over time.Psychoneuroendocrinology · 2024Article
- Multidimensional Religiousness and Spirituality Are Associated With Lower Interleukin-6 and C-Reactive Protein at Midlife: Findings From the Midlife in the United States Study.Annals of behavioral medicine : a publication of the Society of Behavioral Medicine · 2024Article
- Ranking of diseases affecting the health-related quality of life of patients in Poland - a cross-sectional study.Archives of medical science : AMS · 2024Article
4 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveLiving a purposeful life is associated with better mental and physical health, including longevity. Accumulating evidence shows that these associations might be explained by the association between life purpose and regulation of physiological systems involved in the stress response. The aim of this study was to investigate the prospective associations between life purpose and allostatic load over a 10-year period.
methodsAnalyses were conducted using data from the Midlife in the United States (MIDUS) survey. Assessment of life purpose, psychological covariates and demographics were obtained at baseline, while biomarkers of allostatic load were assessed at the 10-year follow-up.
resultsWe found that greater life purpose predicted lower levels of allostatic load at follow-up, even when controlling for other aspects of psychological well-being potentially associated with allostatic load. Further, life purpose was also a strong predictor of individual differences in self-health locus of control-i.e., beliefs about how much influence individuals can exert on their own health-which, in turn, partially mediated the association between purpose and allostatic load. Although life purpose was also negatively linked to other-health locus of control-i.e., the extent to which individuals believe their health is controlled by others/chance-this association did not mediate the impact of life purpose on allostatic load.
conclusionThe current study provides the first empirical evidence for the long-term physiological correlates of life purpose and supports the hypothesis that self-health locus of control acts as one proximal psychological mechanism through which life purpose may be linked to positive biological outcomes.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.