Purpose in life as a predictor of mortality across adulthood

Hill, Patrick L.; Turiano, Nicholas A.

doi:10.1177/0956797614531799

Cited by 516Aging and Gerontology ResearchPsychological Well-being and Life SatisfactionReligion, Spirituality, and Psychology

Purpose in life as a predictor of mortality across adulthood

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Hill, Patrick L., Turiano, Nicholas A.·2014·Psychological Science

DOI 10.1177/0956797614531799PMC PMC4224996

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Abstract

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

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A growing body of findings from longitudinal epidemiological studies shows that purpose predicts reduced morbidity (including reduced risk of Alzheimer's disease, mild cognitive impairment, stroke, and myocardial infarction) and extended longevity.
“A growing body of findings from longitudinal epidemiological studies show that purpose predicts reduced morbidity (e.g., reduced risk of Alzheimer ' s disease and mild cognitive impairment, as well as reduced risk of stroke and myocardial infarction) and extended longevity (10, 16 -21).”
From Purpose in life and use of preventive health care services (2014) · cites this paper as [21]
The Results report that greater purpose predicted lower mortality risk over 14 years, supporting the longevity portion of the sentence. The paper does not report reduced risks of Alzheimer’s disease, mild cognitive impairment, stroke, or myocardial infarction; its Methods focus on mortality rather than those morbidity outcomes. Page numbers are unavailable in our copy. (LLM, conf=0.88)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
Nostalgia may reduce mortality risk.
“reduce mortality risk (Hill & Turiano, 2014)”
From To Nostalgize (2015) · cites this paper as Hill & Turiano, 2014
The Results report that greater purpose in life predicted lower mortality risk over 14 years. The supplied passages and searches for nostalgia and nostalgic memories found no passage addressing whether nostalgia affects mortality risk. (LLM, conf=0.78)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

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“…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.,…”
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Authors: Hill, P. L., & Turiano, N. A.
Affiliations: Carleton University (CA)
University of Rochester Medicine (US)
ORCID: Hill, Patrick L.
Turiano, Nicholas A.
Venue: Psychological Science
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Published: 2014-05-08
Volume: 25
Issue: 7
Pages: 1482-1486
ISSN: 0956-7976 (ISSN-L)
1467-9280
DOI: 10.1177/0956797614531799
PMC: PMC4224996
OpenAlex: W2154766191
Cited by: 516
References: 22
Citations by year: 2026: 39 · 2025: 39 · 2024: 45 · 2023: 43 · 2022: 49 · 2021: 42 · 2020: 54 · 2019: 47 · 2018: 32 · 2017: 31 · 2016: 63 · 2015: 27 · 2014: 5
FWCI: 63.44
Type: journal article
Language: en
Open access: green
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
Licence: journals.sagepub.com/page/policies/text-and-data-mining-license (tdm)
Locations: Psychological Science (publishedVersion)
PubMed (publishedVersion)
PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders: National Institute on Aging (P01AG020166)
National Institute of Mental Health (T32-MH018911-23, T32MH018911)
Topics: Social Sciences › Psychology › Neuropsychology and Physiological Psychology › Aging and Gerontology Research
Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Psychological Well-being and Life Satisfaction
Social Sciences › Health › Religion, Spirituality, and Psychology
Keywords: meaning of life, mortality, longevity, healthy aging, well-being, MIDUS, retirement, life satisfaction, psychological well-being
MeSH terms: Adult, Aged, Aging, Female, Follow-Up Studies, Humans, Longevity, Male, Middle Aged, Mortality, Motivation, Prognosis, United States, Proportional Hazards Models, Value of Life, Young Adult

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Purpose in life as a predictor of mortality across adulthood

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