Purpose in life among very old men

Abstract

The aim of the study was to illuminate very old men’s experiences and reflections of purpose in life. The participants were 23 men who were interviewed and answered a specific question about purpose in life. The answers were analyzed according to qualitative content analysis, which revealed three content areas: the purpose of one’s life as a whole; purpose in everyday life; and reflections on purpose in life. Our findings showed that very old men experience purpose in life most strongly when remembering the past and when work is stressed as important. The analyzed text was dominated by positive experiences of PIL, although one man said that he had given up and that there was no purpose in his life at all.