TY  - EJOU
AU  - Cai, Jingxue 
AU  - Chen, Xi 
AU  - Wu, Yilei 
AU  - Lin, Wanru 

TI  - Sense of purpose and academic engagement: The mediating role of future orientation
T2  - Journal of Psychology in Africa

PY  - 2026
VL  - 36
IS  - 2
SN  - 1815-5626

AB  - This study examined the role of future orientation in the association between sense of purpose and academic engagement among university students. Using a cross-sectional design, data were collected from 1174 undergraduate students (females = 64.4%) across five universities in China. Participants completed well-validated scales assessing sense of purpose, future orientation, and academic engagement. Mediation analyses showed that sense of purpose was associated with higher academic engagement, with future orientation partially mediating this association to be stronger. The indirect effect of sense of purpose on academic engagement through future orientation accounted for 33.8% of the total effect, indicating partial mediation with a practically meaningful indirect pathway. Specifically, students with a stronger sense of purpose were more likely to adopt future-oriented cognitive and behavioral strategies, which in turn facilitated sustained academic engagement. These findings provide empirical support for a motivational-self-regulatory pathway consistent with Goal-Setting Theory, demonstrating that purpose-related meaning enhances academic engagement through future-oriented cognition and planning. These findings suggest that educators and counselors could foster students’ sense of purpose to encourage future-oriented thinking, thereby promoting sustained academic engagement.
KW  - sense of purpose; academic engagement; future orientation; university students

DO  - 10.32604/jpa.2026.078827