How environmental and psychological factors interact with travel participation after spinal cord injury

Spinal cord injury (SCI) usually causes neurological impairment, which can make traveling to places challenging. The ability to travel is nevertheless essential for societal participation, and full participation of persons in society after SCI is a key indicator of successful rehabilitation. Research has widely documented lowered level of participation of people living with SCI. To offer insights for effective intervention, the study aims to examine how psychological and environmental factors influence participation in travel related activities after SCI. Based on the self-determination theory (SDT) and the literature in participation research, the study proposed a model depicting the interrelationships among travel barriers, travel need satisfaction, travel motivation and participation of people with SCI in travel-related activities.

Cross-sectional quantitative data were collected from 250 individuals enrolled in a SCI model system.

Path analysis reveals significant negative effect of travel barriers on respondents' need satisfaction for autonomy, which in turn affects controlled motivation (introjected and external) and amotivation. Only external motivation leads to participation in travel while amotivation negatively influences travel participation. Travel barriers were found to indirectly influence travel participation through need satisfaction for autonomy, external motivation and amotivation.

Although people have high intrinsic motivation for travel, they do not travel for fun as much as for external motivations after SCI. Travel barriers can lower people's need satisfaction for autonomy, which results more travel for external motivation. The study provides preliminary evidence supporting an SDT-based travel participation model after SCI. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).