purpose
CENTER FOR RESEARCH ON GIRLS
A SERIES OF RESEARCH AND INFORMATIONAL PUBLICATIONS BY LCRG
“Putting the world’s best research to work for girls.”
by Tori S. Cordiano, Ph.D.
PURPOSE AND RESILIENCE Purpose is “a stable and generalized intention to accomplish something that is at once meaningful to the self and of consequence to the world beyond the self.” 1 Although purpose involves setting and striving toward long-term goals, these goals extend beyond the self and include a desire to make a difference in the world. The construct of purpose operates independently from intellectual ability2, race/ethnicity and socioeconomic status.3 Sense of purpose evolves as children age; although younger children are less able to identify long-term purpose, they are still able to set short-term goals related to purpose, such as participating in a classroom service project or practicing their role in a gradewide performance.4 Beginning in adolescence, children are better able to conceptualize long-term goals and to develop a sense of self within the bigger picture of the world.