Sense of Mission and Subsequent Health and Well-being among Young Adults:An Outcome-Wide Analysis.

This study prospectively examined an aspect of purpose in life, specifically having a sense of mission, and a wide range of psychosocial well-being, mental health, health behaviors and physical health outcomes in young adults. Longitudinal data from the Growing Up Today Study (2007 to either 2010 or 2013 questionnaire wave; mean baseline age was 22.97 years) were analyzed using generalized estimating equations. Sample sizes ranged from 6,323 to 7,463, depending on outcome. Bonferroni correction was used to correct for multiple testing. All models controlled for sociodemographic characteristics, religious service attendance, maternal attachment and prior values of the outcome variables. Greater sense of mission was associated with greater psychological well-being (including life satisfaction, positive affect, self-esteem, emotional processing and emotional expression), greater preventive health care use, more volunteering activities and possibly fewer depressive symptoms. However, there was little association with physical health or other behavioral outcomes. The formation of a sense of mission may provide a novel target for promoting multiple facets of psychological well-being, prosocial characters and possibly mental health among young adults. PMID: 30649174 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]
Source: Am J Epidemiol - Category: Epidemiology Authors: Tags: Am J Epidemiol Source Type: research