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OBJECTIVE Studies of combat emphasize its impact upon health-related outcomes (e.g., depression). Little is known regarding the risk that combat poses to positive outcomes, such as meaning in life, and factors that mitigate this risk. We sought to investigate whether combat poses an indirect risk to life meaning and protective factors that mitigate this risk. METHOD Through an online survey at 2 time points, 153 combat-exposed veterans enrolled in college reported combat exposure, health status (posttraumatic stress disorder, depressive, somatic symptoms), meaning in life, and protective factors (social support, instructor autonomy support, coping ability, academic self-efficacy, social and community participation, and meaningful activity). We used path analysis to (a) explore whether baseline health status and life meaning mediated the relationship between combat and follow-up life meaning, and (b) test whether protective factors promoted life meaning despite combat and health status (combat-related risk). RESULTS The relationship between combat and follow-up life meaning was mediated by baseline health status and life meaning. Meaningful activity and coping ability were associated with greater life meaning independently of combat-related risk. The indirect effect of combat upon life meaning was weakened when social support, instructor autonomy support, coping ability, and academic self-efficacy were high. CONCLUSIONS Combat is associated with worse health status, in turn limiting student veterans' life meaning. This supports an expanded conception of combat-related risk, in which the effect of combat upon positive outcomes is emphasized. Findings indicate that the proposed protective factors may mitigate combat-related risk. We discuss implications for research and practice. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

Objectives: To create a Japanese version of the Engagement in Meaningful Activities Survey (EMAS) and assess internal consistency, test–retest reliability, convergent and structural validity. Method: We conducted a cultural translation and validation study of the Japanese version of the EMAS (EMAS-J) in a sample of 96 community-dwelling older adults in the Tohoku Region of Japan. Results: Internal consistency of the EMAS-J (α = .91) was very good. Low to moderate correlations were found with indicators of health-related quality of life, depression, and life purpose and meaning. Exploratory factor analysis indicated a two-factor structure within the EMAS-J; cultural differences in item-factor composition compared with previously reported EMAS factor structures are discussed. Implications: The EMAS-J is a reliable and valid assessment of engagement in meaningful activities for older adults in Japan. The assessment can be used to evaluate the effects of occupation-based interventions upon health and well-being.

This study investigates the psychometric properties of the Meaningful Activity Participation Assessment-Meaning (MAPA-M) scale using the Rasch measurement model. For the psychometric properties of MAPA-M, principal component analysis, Rasch analysis, and differential item functioning analysis were conducted. Participants in this study were 480 older adults from the USC Well Elderly 2 study, recruited from 21 locations in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. There were eight items with DIF, but they were accepted because they assumed unidimensionality and showed good person invariance. The 25 items assuming unidimensionality of MAPA-M had values between 0.6 and 1.4 in infit and Outfit MnSq, and all ZSTD values were less than 2.0. The 25 items demonstrated a conceptual item-difficulty hierarchy. The person strata value was 2.68, which is equivalent to a reliability index value of .76. The findings indicate that the revised scale can accurately and reliably measure meaningful activities by older adults.

Importance: The inability to participate in meaningful activities is one of stroke survivors’ main difficulties and has a negative effect on their satisfaction and quality of life. Objective: To assess the reliability and validity of the Persian version of the Engagement in Meaningful Activities Survey (EMAS–P) and predictors of participation in meaningful activity among chronic stroke survivors. Design: Cross-sectional. Setting: Medical and rehabilitation centers. Participants: One hundred twenty-three people (75 men, 48 women) with chronic stroke. Outcomes and Measures: Participants were evaluated with the EMAS–P, Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS), Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale, Purpose in Life Test–Short Form (PIL–SF), 36-Item Short Form Health Survey (SF–36), and Life Satisfaction Index–Z (LSI–Z). Results: The EMAS–P showed good internal consistency (Cronbach’s α = .95) and test–retest reliability (intraclass correlation coefficient = .87 for EMAS–P total score). Test–retest reliability for each EMAS–P item was moderate (κ = .40–.65). A significant correlation between the EMAS–P and PIL–SF (r = .86), SWLS (r = .83), LSI–Z (r = .75), and SF–36 subscales (rs = .52–.83) indicated the appropriate convergent validity. The EMAS–P’s discriminative validity was also confirmed for age, depression level, and disability level among people with chronic stroke. Depression, disability level, gender, and fatigue were significant predictors of EMAS–P score. Conclusions and Relevance: The results indicate that the EMAS–P has acceptable reliability and validity among Iranian people with chronic stroke. Moreover, the EMAS–P showed good discriminant validity for age, depression, and disability level among them. What This Article Adds: The EMAS–P is a reliable and valid scale for assessing the engagement of Iranian chronic stroke survivors in meaningful activities and thus should be helpful in both clinical research and practice.

Student service members/veterans (SSM/V) are distinct from non-veteran students in a variety of ways, including in their cannabis use patterns and potentially their motives for cannabis use. Additionally, previous research has shown that men and women endorse different motives for their cannabis use. The present study was designed to assess whether a popular measure of cannabis use motives is invariant across veteran status and gender identity. Based on previous research, we hypothesized that cannabis motives would show invariance across SSM/V men, SSM/V women, non-veteran men, and non-veteran women (n = 1,011, SSM/V = 553) among those who indicated using cannabis at least once in their lifetime. Results from the four-group invariance testing procedure revealed metric invariance. This suggests that while the factor structure and factor loadings are invariant, there are differences at the intercept level for cannabis motives across groups. The same items load onto the same latent constructs and the strength of the items loading onto the latent factors was also the same across groups. The demonstrated invariance has implications for use in SSM/V and non-veteran clients. As this scale is brief, it could easily be used as a screening tool or used to guide intervention content.

Meaningful Activity Participation Assessment (MAPA) is an appropriate tool for assessing both objective and subjective aspects of participation.This study aimed to investigate the psychometric properties of MAPA in chronic stroke survivors.Translation of MAPA was done according to the standard protocol of forward-backward translation. One hundred and seven chronic stroke survivors participated in this study. In addition to the MAPA, they were assessed by Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS), Center for Epidemiologic Studies of Depression Scale (CES-D), Life Satisfaction Index-Z (LSI-Z), Purpose in Life Test-Short Form (PIL-SF), and 36-Item Short-Form Survey (SF-36). To investigate the test-retest reliability, 37 participants were reassessed by MAPA after two weeks. Reliability, construct and known-groups validity were evaluated for MAPA.The results showed an acceptable internal consistency (Cronbach's α = 0.79) and good test-retest reliability (ICC = 0.92) of MAPA. A significant moderate to high correlation was found between the MAPA and PIL-SF, CES-D, LSI-Z, SWLS, and different subscales of SF-36 (r = 0.32-0.65). MAPA showed good ability to differentiate between young adults (age≤ 65 years) and older adults (age65 years) with chronic stroke (The MAPA has appropriate reliability and validity in chronic stroke survivors and is suggested to be used in research and clinical settings.

Objective The purpose of this study was to identify specific and modifiable supported education (SEd) service needs for the veteran population. To do so, we compared veterans participating in SEd services to other veterans on campus with respect to service-related challenges, community reintegration, and academic-related challenges. Identifying independent factors that distinguish veterans receiving SEd services from other veterans on campus may help operationalize interventions that target the unique challenges in this vulnerable population. Method This study used an exploratory cross-sectional design. We used logistic regression on 410 veterans attending college. Models tested whether sociodemographic characteristics (e.g., age), service-related challenges (e.g., combat exposure), academic-related challenges (e.g., academic self-efficacy), and aspects of community reintegration (e.g., employment status) distinguished veterans receiving SEd services (n = 94) from veterans on campus (n = 316). Results Veterans who reported (a) more severe combat exposure, (b) more severe posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, (c) service-related mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), (d) lower levels of academic self-efficacy, and (e) no paid employment were more likely to participate in SEd services. Conclusions and implications for practice This study established several factors that distinguished veterans receiving SEd services from veterans on campus. Findings indicate that SEd education services for veterans should: (a) apply principles of trauma-informed care, (b) mitigate the influence of PTSD and/or mTBI upon academic success and community reintegration, (c) promote academic self-efficacy, and (d) integrate principles of supported employment. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

Objective: To understand whether symptoms of health conditions explain the negative association between combat exposure and student Veterans' achievement of a meaningful life. Participants: 153 combat Veterans enrolled in college between November 2013 and April 2018. Methods: Through an online survey, participants reported combat exposure, health status (symptoms of conditions such as depression), and aspects of a meaningful life (belonging, self-understanding, and doing) at two time points. Path analysis was used to explore whether baseline health status mediated the relationship between combat exposure and belonging, self-understanding, and doing at follow-up. Results: Indirect effects indicated that the negative influence of combat on student Veterans' sense of belonging, self-understanding, and doing at follow-up was mediated by poor health at baseline. Conclusions: Combat exposure may contribute to the development of health conditions, which in turn limit student Veterans' experience of three aspects of a meaningful life: a sense of belonging, self-understanding, and doing.

This study examined relationships between instructor autonomy support, academic self-efficacy, academic problems and academic achievement among student service members/veterans (SSM/V). Participant...

Meaning in occupation is an essential concept for occupational science because its presence is thought to foster human development, health, and well-being. We explored this concept using qualitative research synthesis and integrated 11 qualitative studies of meaning in occupation from the Journal of Occupational Science published between 1993 and 2010. Framework synthesis method guided data extraction and focused on identification of positive subjective experiences associated with occupation. Content analysis method guided interpretation of the framework synthesis data, from which a richly interconnected system of positive subjective experiences (forms of meaning) emerged, referred to as an occupational meaning system. The higher-order themes of Social, Selfhood, and Pleasure meanings were frequently linked together by their 12 underlying forms of meaning: belonging and helping (Social), autonomy, mastery, continuity, self-esteem, health and well-being, and purposes (Selfhood), and enjoyment, stim...

Experiences of hedonia (i.e., seeking pleasure) and eudaimonia (i.e., actualizing human potential in pursuit of meaningful goals) are central to the study of human well-being.This study sought to examine levels of hedonia (pleasure) and eudaimonia (productivity) in a convenience sample of college (university) students' ( n = 264) daily activities, controlling for levels of perceived stress.Data were gathered using a 24-hr time-use recall diary designed to assess objective and subjective information about everyday activities. Descriptions of self-reported everyday activities were coded into 20 activity types.Activities reported high in pleasure were eating, listening to music/watching movies, and exercise. Activities reported as high in productivity were studying and working. Activities reported as high in both pleasure and productivity were reported less frequently and often had a recognizable outcome or provided social connection.Developing a greater understanding of how college students experience their daily activities could strengthen programs designed to enable students to manage stress and sustain their well-being.

IntroductionThe purpose of this pilot study was to establish the feasibility of completing a future controlled trial of a multi-component cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia program for military veterans with sleep disturbance.MethodThis was a single-arm feasibility and pilot study. Participants were United States post-9/11 veterans with service-connected injuries, university students, and had self-reported sleep disturbances. Restoring Effective Sleep Tranquility was a multi-component cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia intervention consisting of seven sessions of group therapy and eight 1:1 sessions delivered by occupational therapists. Feasibility and pilot indicators were process, resources, management, and scientific, including pre–post-assessments of sleep difficulties, dysfunctional sleep beliefs, participation, and pain interference.FindingsIndicators were supportive of feasibility, including reduced sleep difficulties (for example Medical Outcomes Study Sleep Measure [ t = 3.29, p = .02]), reduced nightmares: t = 2.79, p = .03; fewer dysfunctional sleep beliefs: t = 3.63, p = .01, and greater ability to participate in social roles: t = –2.86, p = .03, along with trends towards improved satisfaction with participation and reduced pain interference.ConclusionThe Restoring Effective Sleep Tranquility program may reduce sleep difficulties and improve participation in US veterans with service-connected injuries, and evidence indicates a controlled trial would be feasible to deliver.

Objective First, to establish empirically-based effect size interpretation guidelines for rehabilitation treatment effects. Second, to evaluate statistical power in rehabilitation research. Data Sources The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews was searched through June 2019. Study Selection Meta-analyses included in the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews with “rehabilitation” as a keyword and clearly evaluated a rehabilitation intervention. Data Extraction We extracted Cohen’s d effect sizes and associated sample sizes for treatment and comparison groups. Two independent investigators classified the interventions into 4 categories using the Rehabilitation Treatment Specification System. The 25th, 50th, and 75th percentile values within the effect size distribution were used to establish interpretation guidelines for small, medium, and large effects, respectively. A priori power analyses established sample sizes needed to detect the empirically-based values for small, medium, and large effects. Post-hoc power analyses using median sample sizes revealed whether the “typical” rehabilitation study was sufficiently powered to detect the empirically-based values. Post hoc power analyses established the statistical power of each test based on the sample size and reported effect size. Data Synthesis We analyzed 3381 effect sizes extracted from 99 meta-analyses. Interpretation guidelines for small effects ranged from 0.08 to 0.15; medium effects ranged from 0.19 to 0.36; and large effects ranged from 0.41 to 0.67. We present sample sizes needed to detect these values based on a priori power analyses. Post hoc power analyses revealed that a “typical” rehabilitation study lacks sufficient power to detect the empirically-based values. Post hoc power analyses using reported sample sizes and effects indicated the studies were underpowered, with median power ranging from 0.14 to 0.23. Conclusions This study presented novel and empirically-based interpretation guidelines for small, medium, and large rehabilitation treatment effects. The observed effect size distributions differed across intervention categories, indicating that researchers should use category-specific guidelines. Furthermore, many published rehabilitation studies are underpowered.

Student service members/veterans (SSM/Vs) may experience diminished social support and meaningful activity due to health-related sequelae, in turn threatening their community reintegration. Social and community participation may foster both social support and meaningful activity. This study assessed whether social and community participation explained social support and meaningful activity and evaluated the psychometric properties of the Veterans’ Social and Community Participation Assessment (VSCPA). Online surveys generated responses to the VSCPA, indicators of social support, meaningful activity, health-related challenges, and demographic characteristics. Multiple regression models explored predictors of social support and meaningful activity. The VSCPA comprised three components: active community participation, familial and household participation, and social participation. These components exhibited positive associations with social support and meaningful activity and negative relationships with health-related sequelae. Targeting social and community participation among SSM/Vs may be a fruitful means by which occupational therapists bolster social support and meaningful activity.

The purpose of this study was to assess how post-9/11 university student veterans differ from nonveteran university students on four mental health indicators. In comparison to a demographically matched sample of nonveteran students, it was found that veterans in this study had significantly higher levels of depression and post-traumatic stress symptomatology and non-significantly lower levels of engagement in meaningful activities and meaning in life. This non-experimental study indicates that mental health differences between student veterans and their nonveteran peers do exist, and argues for the inclusion of occupational therapy services for student veterans.

Importance: Occupational therapy practitioners can use therapeutic activity to promote veterans’ well-being, but the mechanisms through which participation promotes well-being are poorly understood. Objective: To examine whether coping ability, meaningful activity, and social support mediate the relationship between participation and two indicators of veterans’ overall well-being: life meaning (psychological well-being) and life satisfaction (subjective well-being). Design: Explanatory cross-sectional design. We used two multiple mediation models to test whether coping ability, meaningful activity, and social support explained the relationship between participation and both life meaning and life satisfaction. Models were adjusted for demographic characteristics and service-related health conditions (e.g., posttraumatic stress disorder). Setting: Community. Participants: Three hundred eighty-nine community-based veterans attending college. Intervention: None. Outcomes and Measures: Measures of participation, coping ability, meaningful activity, social support, life meaning, life satisfaction, and service-related health conditions. Results: Meaningfulness of activity partially explained the relationship between participation and both psychological well-being (B = 0.16, standard error [SE] = 0.04, 99% confidence interval [CI] [0.07, 0.27]) and subjective well-being (B = 0.14, SE = 0.03, 99% CI [0.07, 0.24]). Social support partially explained the relationship between participation and subjective well-being (B = 0.05, SE = 0.02, 99% CI [0.01, 0.11]). These findings persisted when symptoms of service-related health conditions were accounted for. Conclusions and Relevance: Veterans’ participation is associated with a greater sense of meaningful activity and social support, which in turn promotes psychological and subjective well-being. Occupational therapy practitioners may promote veterans’ well-being by supporting engagement in activities that elicit meaning and enable social interaction, although further study is needed. What This Article Adds: This is among the first studies to test mechanisms underlying the relationship between veterans’ engagement in activities and their overall well-being. Results may inform treatment theories for activity-based interventions in the veteran population. For example, results indicate that occupational therapy interventions that facilitate engagement in meaningful and shared activities could be developed to promote veterans’ well-being.

Importance: Occupational therapists can foster student veterans’ resilience, but targets for intervention must be developed. Objective: To explain factors influencing student veterans’ successful adaptation to past combat exposure, we hypothesized that participants with high life meaning would have greater levels of protective factors and lower levels of health conditions than those with low life meaning. Design: Longitudinal panel study with two measurements. Participants were classified by level of combat exposure (high–low) and life meaning (high–low) at follow-up, yielding four possible classifications (e.g., resilient group: high combat exposure, high life meaning). Linear mixed models were fit to obtain adjusted means of protective factors and health conditions for each classification; independent-samples t tests were used to examine differences between classifications. Setting: Community. Participants: Convenience sample of 153 combat-exposed student veterans. Outcomes and Measures: Psychometrically sound measures of combat exposure, life meaning, protective factors (social and instructor autonomy support, coping ability, academic self-efficacy, social–community participation, and meaningful activity), and health conditions (posttraumatic stress [PTSD], depression, somatic symptoms). Results: Groups with high life meaning at follow-up in response to both levels of combat exposure reported greater meaningful activity and coping ability and fewer depressive symptoms. Participants with high life meaning in response to low combat exposure had greater social support and fewer somatic symptoms; participants with high life meaning in response to high combat exposure had lower PTSD. Conclusions and Relevance: Occupational therapists may foster student veterans’ resilience by promoting meaningful activity, social support, and coping ability while managing symptoms of health conditions. What This Article Adds: To the best of our knowledge, this study is the first to offer empirical support for potential targets of occupational therapy intervention that address student veterans’ successful adaptation to combat exposure. Findings suggest that researchers should develop and test interventions that facilitate successful engagement in meaningful and shared activities and that occupational therapists should work within multidisciplinary teams to bolster coping ability and manage symptoms of combat-related health conditions.

The purpose of this study was to further assess the psychometric properties of the PPR Profile, a newly developed tool which assesses people's experiences of pleasure, productivity, and restoration in the occupational context of their time use. The relationships between mean pleasure, productivity and restoration scores, a global indicator of occupational experience and measures of meaning in life, positive and negative affect, and life satisfaction were examined using data from students (n=266) from a western university in the United States. Relationships were examined using multiple regression models. Validity evidence of the PPR Profile based on relationship to other variables was found. Daily mean pleasure and daily mean productivity were statistically significant predictors of a global assessment of occupational experience, meaning in life, positive affect, and life satisfaction. When controlling for global occupational experience, pleasure helped explain positive and negative affect and sati...

We examined the feasibility of Aging Well by Design, a Lifestyle RedesignCommunity-dwelling older adults participated in the 12-wk program, which emphasized an occupational approach to healthy aging. Outcomes evaluated were recruitment, attendance, resource use, participant satisfaction, and subjective benefit to participants.The 13 participants, ages 66-88 yr, attended an average of 10 of 12 sessions. The intervention was completed as planned, physical resources were suitable, and financial resources were adequate. Participants expressed satisfaction with the program's facilitator, group discussions, and materials. Perceived benefits were social relationships, awareness of community resources, and change in attitude toward aging.Implementation of a 3-mo Lifestyle Redesign-inspired program within a health care system was feasible.

As definitions of life balance continue to proliferate within occupational science, ongoing testing of underlying assessment approaches are needed to inform the life balance construct. Within the present study a subjective definition of life balance was proposed that included the assessment of both meaningful activity and needs for meaningful activity. Using indicators of meaningful activity (Engagement in Meaningful Activities Survey) and needs for meaningful activity (Meaningful Activity Wants and Needs Assessment), life balance was defined as a person reporting high levels of meaningful activity concurrently with low needs for additional meaningful activity experiences (Balance). Alternatively, people were defined as experiencing Imbalance when they concurrently reported low levels of meaningful activity and high needs for meaningful activity. In a sample of 250 university undergraduate and graduate students the present definition of life balance demonstrated theoretically predicted relationships with ...

Date Presented 04/06/19 In a sample of 389 student veterans, we employed regression to establish that the meaningfulness of occupation mediated the relationship between social and community-based occupation and both psychological and subjective well-being. Occupation was also associated with greater coping skills and social support, in turn contributing to greater psychological and subjective well-being, respectively. Findings support OTs’ use of occupation to promote veterans’ well-being. Primary Author and Speaker: Adam Kinney Additional Authors and Speakers: Aaron Eakman

BackgroundThe Dynamic Gait Index (DGI) has emerged as a valid indicator of functional gait abilities for people with balance and vestibular disorders. Recent Rasch-based analyses have indicated possible concerns for multidimensionality and a ceiling effect within the DGI.ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to evaluate the DGI in a sample of patients from a dizziness and balance clinic to determine whether patient features such as dizziness or fall history influence the measurement characteristics of the DGI.DesignThis study used a retrospective design.MethodsA sample of 117 patients' charts was reviewed, and patients were grouped according to a primary impairment of dizziness only or imbalance and were categorized based on a history of falls. A one-parameter Rasch-Andrich rating scale model was used with thorough analyses, including rating scale analysis, item-difficulty hierarchy, scale unidimensionality, and differential item functioning (DIF).ResultsThe DGI demonstrated an effective rating scale design and was found to be a unidimensional measurement of dynamic gait. The DGI displayed a modest ceiling effect, primarily with patients with higher functional levels displaying symptoms of dizziness. Three items (“vertical head nods,” “gait on level surface,” and “stepping over obstacles”) demonstrated DIF based on categories of patient characteristics, although the effects on measurement were negligible.LimitationsFunctional categories were based on impairments and not underlying medical diagnoses derived from a retrospective chart review, whereas the limited sample size may have underestimated statistically significant DIF.ConclusionsResults from this study offer additional evidence supporting the validity of the DGI as a measure of gait ability. The present findings also are in agreement with prior research that has shown a ceiling effect for the DGI in people with balance or vestibular disorders. Effects of DIF were found to be negligible, yet the presence of DIF within the present sample helped to explain some differences in DGI item-difficulty hierarchies from prior studies. Continued research is needed to determine how population differences may affect performance on the DGI and to develop and test assessments capable of measuring a broader range of gait abilities.

The author of this study proposed and examined a theoretical model in which meaningful activity fulfills basic psychological needs and contributes to meaning in life. Hypotheses derived from the Meaningful Activity and Life Meaning model and tested within this study included: (1) meaningful activity will be associated with meaning in life, (2) meaningful activity will be associated with basic psychological needs, and (3) basic psychological needs will partially mediate the relationship between meaningful activity and meaning in life. Structural equation modeling with latent variables was used to test the study hypotheses. A total of 591 undergraduate and graduate students completed the Engagement in Meaningful Activities Survey, the Basic Psychological Needs Scales (i.e., autonomy, competence, and relatedness), and the Presence subscale of the Meaning in Life Questionnaire. Results from the study were in full support of each hypothesis and indicate the important role meaningful activity may serve in fostering meaning in life.

The concept of life balance has received growing attention as a way to understand human well-being. Within this paper a novel subjective definition of life balance is proposed, such that persons should evaluate their ongoing occupations as meaningful while concurrently not perceiving a substantive need for more meaning in their occupations. The Meaningful Activity Wants and Needs Assessment (MAWNA) taps a need for meaningful occupation. It was introduced and tested in a sample of 250 university graduate and undergraduate students as a requisite assessment tool aimed at operationalizing this conceptual approach. The MAWNA demonstrated an anticipated three-factor structure composed of competence and goal achievement, pleasure and enjoyment, and social connectedness meanings associated with occupation. Further psychometric evidence in support of the MAWNA included very good internal consistency and test-retest reliabilities, in addition to discriminant and convergent validity identified through its correlati...

Occupational science has held a peripheral interest in the role personality traits may serve in influencing people's engagement in occupation. Like occupation, personality has been identified as a significant factor in explaining personal well-being within the social sciences. Recent models implicate personality, personal projects or life tasks, and personal narrative as three essential layers for understanding human experience. The present study explored how personality traits are related to meaningful occupation and occupational value (two complementary perspectives on occupational experience) and to well-being. In a sample of 224 undergraduate and graduate students from a Mountain-West university in the USA, measures of the Big Five personality traits, life satisfaction and meaning in life were evaluated in relation to the Engagement in Meaningful Activities Survey (EMAS) and the Occupational Value Assessment with Predefined Items (OVal-pd). This study demonstrated that personality variables help to ex...

OBJECTIVE. This study evaluated the measurement characteristics of the Engagement in Meaningful Activities Survey (EMAS) in an age-diverse sample. METHOD. The sample included 154 older adults and 122 college students (age range = 18–100 yr). A Rasch–Andrich rating scale model was used to evaluate the EMAS. Analyses addressed rating scale design, person and item fit, item hierarchy, model unidimensionality, and differential item functioning. RESULTS. Category functioning was improved by reducing the EMAS item responses to four categories. Adequate person response validity was established, and all but one EMAS item demonstrated an ideal fit to the Rasch measurement model. After establishing the item hierarchy, I found the EMAS to be a unidimensional measure. Differential item functioning was not detected using Bonferroni-adjusted statistical criteria. CONCLUSION. The results confirm the potential to validly measure subjective qualities of meaningful activity participation. The EMAS can be used to evaluate processes and outcomes central to occupational therapy practice and to aid in the design of therapeutic occupations.

Fieldwork is essential for training future mental health practitioners. In this study, the authors identified factors predicting the number of students engaged in mental health fieldwork education. Proactive efforts (e.g., setting up structured fieldwork programs), such as offering both Level I and Level II fieldwork experiences, and perceiving no challenge to accepting Level II fieldwork students, predicted greater numbers of students participating in fieldwork. Clinicians who had set up structured fieldwork programs were more likely to have guest lectured in an occupational therapy education program and met with interested students. This is the first study to identify factors that predict participation in mental health fieldwork.

OBJECTIVE. To examine differences in psychosocial protective factors (social support, meaningful occupation, and academic self-efficacy) and health-related vulnerability factors (posttraumatic stress, depression, and somatic symptoms) contributing to resilience in post-9/11 veterans with service-related injuries and nonveterans in postsecondary education. METHOD. A cross-sectional, matched-participants design using propensity score matching was used to test differences in mean levels of protective and vulnerability factors between injured veterans (n = 26) and nonveterans (n = 19); zero-order correlations explored relationships among study variables. RESULTS. The veteran sample demonstrated lower levels of psychosocial protective factors and higher levels of health-related vulnerability factors compared with nonveterans (|0.49| to |1.56|). Psychosocial protective factors were consistently negatively associated with health-related vulnerability factors (−.27 to −.63). CONCLUSION. Post-9/11 veterans with service-related injuries are at a substantial disadvantage in terms of resilience; lower protective factors and elevated vulnerability factors may increase their risk for poor campus integration and impede academic achievement.

This study evaluated the psychometric properties of the Engagement in Meaningful Activities Survey (EMAS) (Goldberg, Brintnell, & Goldberg, 2002) in a sample of older adults living in the greater Los Angeles area. The EMAS evidenced moderate test-retest reliability (r = .56) and good internal consistency (α = .89). Exploratory factor analysis (principal components) discerned a two-component structure within the EMAS, indicative of Personal-Competence and Social-Experiential meaning. The EMAS demonstrated theoretically predicted zero-order correlations with measures of meaning and purpose in life, depressive symptomology, life satisfaction, and health-related quality of life. Regression analyses discerned that purpose and meaning in life consistently predicted the EMAS and its components. Furthermore, persons reporting greater levels of Social-Experiential relative to Personal-Competence meaning had the lowest levels of physical health-related quality of life. This study offers initial evidence in support of the EMAS as a valid measure of meaningful activity in older adults.

The Engagement in Meaningful Activities Survey (EMAS) (Goldberg, Brintnell, & Goldberg, 2002) demonstrated sufficient psychometric properties in a sample of 122 adults. The EMAS was found to have adequate test—retest (r = .71) and internal consistency (α = .88) reliability; significant positive correlations between the EMAS and the subscales of the Basic Psychological Needs Scale and the Sources of Meaning Profile and negative zero-order correlations were found with short form versions of the Boredom Proneness Scale and the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scales. Step-wise multiple regression analysis results showed the Sources of Meaning Profile, Boredom Proneness Scale, and Competence subscale of the Basic Psychological Needs scale best predicted the EMAS. These results lend additional construct validity evidence in support of the EMAS as a brief measure of meaningful activity participation.

Applications of complexity science, including dynamic systems and chaos theories, have become ever‐present in the social sciences. Diverse academic fields have begun to explore their central constructs from a complexity perspective. Occupational science has also begun to discover complexity science as an explanatory framework to aid in the study of occupation. Theoretical models, principles and empirical findings from a number of scholars of occupation suggest that the tenets of complexity may serve an important role in explicating the nature of occupation. However, applications of complexity science in the field of occupational science have almost exclusively focused on the system level of the human as a dynamic or chaotic system. In this article, I propose that the study of occupation should also be informed by adopting a social complexity perspective. This shift in analytic levels, in part, situates the study of occupation at the nexus of human‐to‐human interaction. Though a social level of an...

Background: In mental health care practice and research it is increasingly recognized that clients' subjective perceptions of everyday occupations, such as satisfaction, are important in recovery from mental illness. Instruments thus need to be developed to assess satisfaction with everyday occupations. The aim of the present study was to assess psychometric properties of the 13-item Satisfaction with Daily Occupation (SDO-13) when used with people with mental health problems, including its internal consistency, factor structure, construct validity and whether the scale produced ceiling or floor effects. An additional question concerned if the factor structure varied whether the participants were, or were not, presently engaged in the activity they rated. Methods: The interview-based SDO-13 includes items pertaining to work/studies, leisure, home maintenance, and self-care occupations. Whether the person currently performs an occupation or not, he/she is asked to indicate his/her satisfaction with that occupation. The SDO-13 was completed with 184 persons with mental illness. Residual variables were created to remove the variation linked with currently performing the targeted occupation or not and to assess the factor structure of the SDO-13. The indicators of general satisfaction with daily occupations, self-esteem and global functioning were used to assess construct validity. The statistical methods included tests of homogeneity, confirmatory factor analysis and Pearson correlations. Results: The internal consistency was satisfactory at 0.79. A three-factor solution indicated that the construct behind the SDO-13 was composed of three facets; Taking care of oneself and the home, Work and studies, and Leisure and relaxation. The same factor structure was valid for both original scores and the residuals. An expected pattern of correlations with the indicators was mainly found, suggesting basic construct validity. No ceiling or floor effects were found. Conclusions: Taken together, the findings suggest the SDO-13 is a reliable and robust instrument that may be used to get an overview of the satisfaction people living with mental illness derive from their daily occupations.

The current study used a prospective longitudinal design to determine whether change in meaningful activity over an 11-month period could help explain change in meaning in life in a sample of 174 undergraduate and graduate students. The Engagement in Meaningful Activities Survey, Basic Psychological Needs Scales (i.e., autonomy, competence, relatedness), and the Meaning in Life Questionnaire were used as indicators of the constructs of meaningful activity, basic psychological needs fulfillment, and meaning and purpose in life. The findings were in support of the study hypotheses and indicated that change in meaningful activity explained both change in basic psychological needs fulfillment (i.e., autonomy, competence, relatedness) and change in meaning in life. Further, this study reports findings consistent with results from cross-sectional studies in support of the hypothesis that change in meaningful activity may influence change in meaning in life through two pathways: a direct path of influence from meaningful activity to meaning in life and an indirect path through change in basic psychological needs fulfillment. The current study contributes to a growing literature implicating subjective evaluations of day-to-day action (or meaningful activity) as a fruitful means for exploring relationships between occupation and well-being.

This study evaluated the psychometric properties of the American English (Am. Eng.) version of the Occupational Value Assessment with predefined items (OVal-pd). The OVal-pd is a 26-item Likert-like questionnaire designed to assess the construct of occupational value as framed within the Value and Meaning in Occupations model (ValMO). Following a translation from the Swedish OVal-pd, 277 randomly selected graduate and undergraduate students from a public university in the northwestern United Stated completed the Am. Eng. OVal-pd. Test-retest and internal consistency reliability coefficients were very good utilizing an improved 22-item version of the OVal-pd. The structural validity of the 22-item Am. Eng. OVap-pd was partly confirmed through exploratory factor analysis. The scale was found to assess a one-dimensional value construct supporting the ValMO model, consisting of components clearly reflective of self-reward and concrete value. Exploratory factor analysis results were equivocal with regard to the symbolic dimension of the ValMO model as assessed by the OVal-pd. Discussion suggests the refinement of both the OVal-pd and ValMO model in the light of present and related empirical findings.

The Meaningful Activity Participation Assessment (MAPA), a recently developed 28-item tool designed to measure the meaningfulness of activity, was tested in a sample of 154 older adults. The MAPA evidenced a sufficient level of internal consistency and test-retest reliability and correlated as theoretically predicted with the Life Satisfaction Index-Z, the Satisfaction with Life Scale, the Engagement in Meaningful Activities Survey, the Purpose in Life Test, the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Inventory and the Rand SF-36v2 Health Survey subscales. Zero-order correlations consistently demonstrated meaningful relationships between the MAPA and scales of psychosocial well-being and health-related quality of life. Results from multiple regression analyses further substantiated these findings, as greater meaningful activity participation was associated with better psychological well-being and health-related quality of life. The MAPA appears to be a reliable and valid measure of meaningful activity, incorporating both subjective and objective indicators of activity engagement.

Date Presented 4/16/2015 Among post-9/11 veterans with service-related trauma who were in college, lower social support, lower meaningful occupation, and lower academic self-efficacy—as well as higher posttraumatic stress, higher depression, and higher somatic pain—were found when they were compared with a matched sample. This highlights the need for occupational therapy services.

The present study examined the ecological validity of neuropsychological tests relative to instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs) among 55 participants in a post-acute brain injury rehabilitation program. Stronger intellectual abilities, visual memory, delayed memory, verbal learning, and cognitive flexibility were significantly associated with success on the IADL tasks. However, each IADL task placed unique demands on cognitive abilities. Behavioral ratings of attention span and frustration tolerance also were positively related to task completion. Multiple aspects of patient functioning (neuropsychological abilities, self-regulatory behaviors), as well as task characteristics, must be considered to predict outcomes in everyday functioning.