ArticleCogent psychology2020
Antecedents of Purpose in Life: Evidence from A Lagged Exposure-Wide Analysis.
Article in Cogent psychology, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 17 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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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
17 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Sense of purpose in life and concurrent loneliness and risk of incident loneliness: An individual-participant meta-analysis of 135,227 individuals from 36 cohorts.Journal of affective disorders · 2022Pooled it
- Sense of purpose fluctuations in daily life: A study of young adults and cognitively diverse older adults.Developmental psychology · 2026Article
- Daily Activities and Purpose in Life.International journal of wellbeing · 2026Article
- Evaluation of spiritual well-being using purpose in life (PIL) assessment among older people living in the community of South Korea: a cross-sectional study.Tropical medicine and health · 2025Article
- 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
- Identifying childhood correlates of adult purpose and meaning across 22 countries (Global Flourishing Study).Npj mental health research · 2025Article
- Exploring novel determinants of exercise behavior: a lagged exposure-wide approach.Annals of behavioral medicine : a publication of the Society of Behavioral Medicine · 2025Article
- Important Correlates of Purpose in Life in a Diverse Population-Based Cohort: A Machine Learning Approach.The American journal of geriatric psychiatry : official journal of the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry · 2023Article
- Biopsychosocial Factors That Influence the Purpose in Life among Working Adults and Retirees.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2023Article
- Mind-stimulating leisure activities: Prospective associations with health, wellbeing, and longevity.Frontiers in public health · 2023Article
- Work Expectations, Depressive Symptoms, and Passive Suicidal Ideation Among Older Adults: Evidence From the Health and Retirement Study.The Gerontologist · 2022Article
- What makes life purposeful? Identifying the antecedents of a sense of purpose in life using a lagged exposure-wide approach.SSM - population health · 2022Article
- Sense of Purpose in Life and Subsequent Physical, Behavioral, and Psychosocial Health: An Outcome-Wide Approach.American journal of health promotion : AJHP · 2022Article
- Article
- Role of Libraries in Human Flourishing: Adolescents' Motivational Orientation for Occupation.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021Article
- The bidirectional relationship between sense of purpose in life and physical activity: a longitudinal study.Journal of behavioral medicine · 2021Article
- Purpose Renewal in Adults With Persisting Symptoms After Concussion: Results of a Non-Randomized Feasibility Trial.The Journal of head trauma rehabilitationArticle
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
4 authors.
Funding
Abstract
Potential antecedents to having a sense of purpose in life remain understudied. As researchers begin contemplating purpose as a promising target of public health intervention, it is critical to identify its antecedents. Using prospective data from the Nurses' Health Study II (2009-2016; N ranged from 3,905 to 4,189), this study evaluated a wide range of potential antecedents of purpose, including: psychosocial well-being, psychological distress, employment characteristics, lifestyle, and physical health factors. In separate regression models we regressed purpose in life on each candidate antecedent. In each model, we adjusted for the prior value of purpose, prior values of all exposure variables, and various other covariates simultaneously. Bonferroni correction was used to correct for multiple testing. The results suggested that positive affect and the number of close relatives were each associated with higher purpose (e.g., β=0.14, 95% CI: 0.11, 0.17 for positive affect). Several psychological distress indicators were inversely associated with purpose, including depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, loneliness, and hopelessness (e.g., β=-0.16, 95% CI: -0.19, -0.13 for depressive symptoms). There was also some evidence suggesting that fewer close friends, living alone, and unemployment/retirement were associated with lower purpose. There was, however, little evidence that health behaviors or physical health were associated with subsequent purpose. This study extends the literature by providing longitudinal evidence with rigorous analytic methodologies, and by considering a wide range of potential antecedents of purpose including some that have seldom been examined previously.
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Registered trials
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