The influence of generativity on purpose in life is mediated by social support and moderated by prefrontal functional connectivity in at-risk older adults

Abstract

Objectives: Generativity is the desire and actions to improve the well-being of younger generations. Generativity is associated with purpose in life, with both being shown to independently improve cognition in older adults. Our aims were to identify the neural substrates supporting generativity and determine the mechanism underlying the relationship between generativity and purpose in life in older adults. Method: Forty-three older adults (Mage = 70.33, 79.1% female) at risk for Alzheimers disease underwent resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging and completed questionnaires assessing generativity, social support, and purpose in life. Seed-to-voxel analyses examined if resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC) of the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) and ventral striatum, key nodes at the intersection of subjective valuation and self-transcendence, were associated with generativity. Moderated mediation models examined if social support or rsFC mediated or moderated the association between generativity and purpose in life, respectively. Results: Generative desire was associated with enhanced rsFC between the vmPFC and right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (rdlPFC). Affectionate social support fully mediated the relationship between generative desire and purpose in life, and rsFC between the vmPFC and rdlPFC significantly moderated this association. Discussion: This study is the first to examine the rsFC underlying generativity and provides mechanistic insight into how purpose in life is enhanced through generative desire. Generative desire is supported by rsFC implicated in value-based social decision making and is associated with purpose in life through enhanced love and affection from others. This knowledge contributes to future developments of personalized interventions that promote resilience in at-risk aging.