Purpose in Life as a Predictor of Mortality Across Adulthood

• DOI: 10.1177/0956797614531799
• Publication Date: 2014-05-10T00:32:41Z
• Authors: Patrick L. Hill; Nicholas A. Turiano
• Keywords: Longitudinal Study; Longitudinal data; Adult Development; Baseline (sea); Successful Aging; Longitudinal sample

Having a purpose in life has been cited consistently as an indicator of healthy aging for several reasons, including its potential reducing mortality risk. In the current study, we sought to extend previous findings by examining whether promotes longevity across adult years, using data from longitudinal Midlife United States (MIDUS) sample. Proportional-hazards models demonstrated that purposeful individuals lived longer than their counterparts did during 14 years after baseline assessment, even when controlling other markers psychological and affective well-being. Moreover, these benefits not appear be conditional on participants’ age, how long they follow-up period, or had retired workforce. words, having appears widely buffer against risk years.