Purpose and meaning in life and suicidal thoughts and behaviors among U.S. college students: a national study of risk and protective correlates

This study examined the association between purpose and meaning in life (PMIL) and suicide-related outcomes, including suicidal ideation (SI), suicide planning (SP), and suicide attempts (SA), among U.S. college students. We analyzed Healthy Minds Study data from 560,755 students surveyed between 2007 and 2022; multivariable models were restricted to 2016–2022, when all measures were available. Logistic regression models estimated associations between PMIL and outcome, adjusting for depression, anxiety, disordered eating, and demographic and psychosocial covariates. Across the study period, mean PMIL declined from 5.9 to 5.2 while past-year SI rose from 5.8% to 14.0%. Higher PMIL was associated with lower odds of SI, SP, and SA. Each one-point increase in PMIL corresponded to 23% lower adjusted odds of SI, such that students at the highest level of PMIL had approximately five-fold lower adjusted odds of SI than those at the lowest. Depression and disordered eating were independent predictors; the weaker adjusted association for anxiety should be interpreted considering its overlap with depression. Elevated risk was observed among younger students, transgender and non-binary students, sexual minority students, and those reporting financial strain or relationship loss, while social support was associated with lower odds of all three outcomes. The association between PMIL and SI attenuated as depressive symptoms increased but remained present at all symptom levels. These cross-sectional findings indicate that PMIL is robustly and independently associated with lower odds of suicidal thoughts and behaviors and suggest that interventions promoting purpose and meaning warrant prospective evaluation as complements to suicide prevention efforts.