Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 Aug;27(9):2068-2078.
doi: 10.1177/13591053211021661. Epub 2021 May 27.

Sense of purpose in life and motivation, barriers, and engagement in physical activity and sedentary behavior: Test of a mediational model

Angelina R Sutin  1 , Martina Luchetti  1 , Yannick Stephan  2 , Antonio Terracciano  1
Affiliations

Sense of purpose in life and motivation, barriers, and engagement in physical activity and sedentary behavior: Test of a mediational model

Angelina R Sutin et al. J Health Psychol. 2022 Aug.

Abstract

Purpose in life is associated with greater engagement in physical activity. The present research (N = 3473) addresses whether motivations and barriers to physical activity mediate this relation concurrently and prospectively early in the coronavirus pandemic. Higher purpose was associated with greater intrinsic, identified, and external motivation for physical activity and fewer barriers. Intrinsic motivation was a robust mediator of the relation between purpose and more physical activity and less sedentary behavior reported concurrently and prospectively; identified motivation mediated the relation with physical activity. Purpose in life is associated with being more physically active through both greater enjoyment and valuing its benefits.

Keywords: COVID-19; barriers; motivation; physical activity; purpose in life; sedentary behavior.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Boyle PA, Barnes LL, Buchman AS, et al. (2009) Purpose in life is associated with mortality among community-dwelling older persons. Psychosomatic Medicine 71(5): 574–579. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Cohen R, Bavishi C and Rozanski A (2016) Purpose in life and its relationship to all-cause mortality and cardiovascular events: A meta-analysis. Psychosomatic Medicine 78(2): 122–133. - PubMed
    1. Czekierda K, Banik A, Park CL, et al. (2017) Meaning in life and physical health: Systematic review and meta-analysis. Health Psychology Review 11(4): 387–418. - PubMed
    1. de Oliveira DV, do Nascimento MA, Branco BHM, et al. (2020) Psychological factors predicting sedentary behavior of older adults: A cross-sectional study in Brazil. Journal of Aging and Physical Activity: 1–8. doi: 10.1123/japa.2020-0051 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Delextrat AA, Warner S, Graham S, et al. (2016) An 8-week exercise intervention based on zumba improves aerobic fitness and psychological well-being in healthy women. Journal of Physical Activity and Health 13(2): 131–139. - PubMed

Publication types