Purpose in Life and Stress Reactivity.

Individuals with a stronger sense of purpose in life experience better health across the lifespan. This chapter describes one mechanism linking purpose to health, namely stress reactivity. Across survey, experimental, and daily diary studies, research demonstrates that sense of purpose may yield a homeostatic function, insofar that it helps individuals stay the course to progress toward their purpose in life.

Cultural stress and immigrant well-being: The role of sense of purpose.

Objectives: Immigrants face multiple forms of cultural stress that hold pernicious influences on their psychological well-being, including everyday discrimination, bicultural stressors, and negative context of reception from others. Research thus is needed to consider potential buffers and mitigating factors that may help immigrant adults in the face of cultural stress. The present studies evaluated a sense of purpose as one potential buffer.