Looking beyond the importance of life goals. The personal goal model of subjective well-being in neuropsychological rehabilitation

Abstract

Objective: To identify subjective importance, attainability and success of life goals and their predictive value for subjective well-being in patients with acquired brain injury.

Design: Cross-sectional, descriptive.

Setting: Two inpatient neurological rehabilitation centres.

Participants: Patients with non-progressive neurological disorders. Interventions: Survey using questionnaires.

Measures: Life goal characteristics were assessed using a life goal questionnaire (GOALS). Subjective well-being (composite score) was measured using the Center of the Epidemic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D), the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS) and the Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS).

Results: Fifty-nine patients participated in the study. The most important life goals are intimacy (4.59/5), achievement (3.96/5) and altruism (3.89/5). The intimacy goals are considered most attainable (4.19/5) and patients feel most successful in this domain (3.98/5). Two important predictions of the personal goal model of subjective well-being could be confirmed. First, goal attainability moderates the relation between goal importance and goal success. Second, the influence of goal importance on subjective well-being is mediated by experienced success. The most powerful predictors for subjective well-being are success in the achievement domain (β = 0.404) and discrepancy between importance and success in the intimacy domain (β = —0.276).

Conclusions: The subjective well-being of neurological patients depends not only on the appraised importance of life goals but also on their attainability and success.

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