Purpose in Life as a Moderator of the Relationship Between Depression and Chronic Conditions

Depression is an important risk factor for many chronic health conditions, especially cardiovascular disease. Depression can affect the biological pathways that increase disease risk, and it can worsen the symptoms of chronic disease by decreasing self-care behaviors. However, just as it is important to identify risk factors of chronic illnesses, it is equally as important to identify protective factors. One potential protective factor may be sense of purpose in life, or the idea that life has meaning and direction. Purpose in life has been linked to lower incidence of certain chronic diseases and has also been negatively correlated with depressive symptoms. A sense of purpose in life could buffer the effect of depression by serving as a motivator for health-promoting behaviors. This study investigated whether high sense of purpose in life influences the long-term associations between depression, number of chronic illnesses, and cardiovascular risk. Participants were adults who participated in a national, longitudinal study called Midlife Development in the United States (MIDUS). Results indicated that purpose in life did not moderate the relationship between depression and number of chronic health conditions, depression and number of cardiovascular diagnoses, or depression and subjective heart attack risk at either MIDUS timepoint. The findings from this study suggest that purpose in life may not be the appropriate moderator for these relationships, but other variables of psychological well-being, such as autonomy, may be better suited to influence the association of depression and chronic disease.