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Updated: Jun 20, 2026

Gathering Self-Initiated Rat Behavioral Data to Characterize Post-Stroke Deficits
Published on: March 15, 2024
Self-esteem stability and depressive symptoms in acute stroke rehabilitation: methodological and conceptual expansion
Chad D Vickery1, Clea C Evans, Arash Sepehri
1Department of Neurology, Methodist Rehabilitation Center, Jackson, Mississppi 39216, USA. chadvickery@hotmail.com
Objectives:
Explore the relationship of self-esteem level, self-esteem stability, and other moderating variables with depressive symptoms in acute stroke rehabilitation.
Measures:
One hundred twenty participants completed measures of state self-esteem, perceived recovery, hospitalization-based hassles, impairment-related distress, and tendency to overgeneralize negative self-connotations of bad events. Self-report of depressive symptoms was collected at admission and on discharge. Four regression analyses explored the relationship of self-esteem level and stability and each of 4 moderating variables (perceived recovery, hassles, impairment-related distress, and overgeneralization) with depressive symptoms at discharge.
Results:
Analyses indicated significant 3-way interactions in the 4 regression models. In general, individuals with unstable high self-esteem endorsed greater depressive symptoms under conditions of vulnerability (e.g., lower perceived recovery) than did individuals with stable high self-esteem. Under conditions of vulnerability, participants with stable low self-esteem indicated the highest levels of depressive symptoms.
Implications:
Self-esteem level and stability interact with psychological, environmental, and stroke-specific variables to predict depressive symptoms at discharge from stroke rehabilitation. This suggests the viability of self-esteem stability in exploring depressive symptoms in this setting and the complexity of emotional adjustment early after stroke.
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