Personal factors, participation, and satisfaction post-stroke: A qualitative exploration

Decreased participation and life satisfaction are common post-stroke. Exploratory studies have indicated associations between these outcomes and personal factors. Information remains limited and experiences of people with stroke are not well-represented or understood.

The aim of this study was to explore how personal factors influence experiences of participation and life satisfaction for people with stroke living in the community.

Qualitative in-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight participants living in the community post-stroke, chosen purposively based on participation and life satisfaction levels. Data were interrogated using interpretative phenomenological analysis.

Three themes were identified: (1) What does participation mean to me? (2) Looking forward or looking back, and (3) Appraisals, avoidance, and "getting on with it". The first acknowledged the multifaceted nature of participation, although it was typically viewed as incorporating active involvement and social interaction. The additional two themes explored impacts of pre/post-stroke self-discrepancies and threat appraisals on participation and life satisfaction outcomes.

Relationships between participation and personal factors seem to be bidirectional. Life satisfaction appeared to be influenced by rumination on negative self-discrepancies based on difference in pre/post-stroke participation. Findings suggest there may be value in examining the influence of personal factor-related interventions on post-stroke outcomes.