The DOI matches its Crossref record; 26 of the 26 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Purpose in Life as a System that Creates and Sustains Health and Well-Being: An Integrative, Testable Theory
Abstract
Purpose—a cognitive process that defines life goals and provides personal meaning—may help explain disparate empirical social science findings. Devoting effort and making progress toward life goals provides a significant, renewable source of engagement and meaning. Purpose offers a testable, causal system that synthesizes outcomes including life expectancy, satisfaction, and mental and physical health. These outcomes may be explained best by considering the motivation of the individual—a motivation that comes from having a purpose. We provide a detailed definition with specific hypotheses derived from a synthesis of relevant findings from social, behavioral, biological, and cognitive literatures. To illustrate the uniqueness of the purpose model, we compared purpose with competing contemporary models that offer similar predictions. Addressing the structural features unique to purpose opens opportunities to build upon existing causal models of “how and why” health and well-being develop and change over time.
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In the citing paper
“Purpose in life generates approach oriented behaviors where there is effort toward, not away, from purpose-related goals”
From Commitment to a purpose in life: An antidote to the suffering by individuals with social anxiety disorder. (2013) · cites this paper as McKnight & Kashdan, 2009
In the citing paper
“Encouraging clients to think about life aspirations, reflecting on avoidance and control strategies, and focusing on becoming aware of meaningful personal values and making decisions based on those values remain consistent with purpose in life (McKnight & Kashdan, 2009; Steger, 2009).”
From Commitment to a purpose in life: An antidote to the suffering by individuals with social anxiety disorder. (2013) · cites this paper as McKnight & Kashdan, 2009
Citations
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“Purpose may be a broader theoretical perspective that adds to predictions of how a person will view her life in the broadest context possible as opposed to any single time point (McAdams, 2001).”
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Cited by
Sorted by citations
Self-rated health and mortality: a review of twenty-seven community studies.
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“And both Mcknight and Kashdan (2009) and George and Park (2013) argue that it should be explicitly separated from a general sense of meaning in life, and have started empirical efforts to do precisely that.”
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“The relevant literature suggests that purpose conveys important information about individuals’ underlying goal hierarchies, and this information may have significant implications for phenomena such as goal adjustment, health, and well-being (Carver & Scheier, 1998; McKnight & Kashdan, 2009).”
BackgroundResultInfluentialPurpose in life as a predictor of mortality across adulthood
Hill, P. L., & Turiano, N. A. (2014) · Psychological Science · doi:10.1177/0956797614531799 · Cited by 516
“…a purpose suggests that one has committed to a set of clear goals for life (e.g., Hill, Burrow, Brandenberger, Lapsley, & Quaranto, 2010; McKnight & Kashdan, 2009), and the content or character of people’s goals differs with age and the amount of time perceived to be remaining in life (e.g.,…”
BackgroundInfluential
Metadata
- Authors
- McKnight, P. E., & Kashdan, T. B.
- Affiliations
- George Mason University (US)
- Corresponding author
- McKnight, Patrick E.
- Venue
- Review of General Psychology
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 2009-09
- Volume
- 13
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 242-251
- ISSN
- 1089-2680 (ISSN-L)
- 1939-1552
- OpenAlex
- W2141316441
- Cited by
- 965
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2026: 71 · 2025: 96 · 2024: 91 · 2023: 85 · 2022: 95 · 2021: 95 · 2020: 93 · 2019: 54 · 2018: 76 · 2017: 37 · 2016: 37 · 2015: 31 · 2014: 40 · 2013: 25 · 2012: 15
- FWCI
- 16.11
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Review of General Psychology (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Psychological Well-being and Life Satisfaction
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Applied Psychology › Optimism, Hope, and Well-being
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Aging and Gerontology Research
- Keywords
- meaning of life, meaning in life, life goals, well-being, health, life expectancy, life satisfaction, motivation, engagement, integrative theory
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