Participation profiles in domestic life and peer relations as experienced by adolescents with and without impairments and long-term health conditions

ABSTRACT

Purpose: To investigate how individual and environmental factors relate to self-reported participation profiles in adolescents with and without impairments or long-term health conditions. Methods: A person-oriented approach (hierarchical cluster analysis) was used to identify cluster groups of individuals sharing participation patterns in the outcome variables frequency perceived importance in domestic life and peer relations. Cluster groups were compared using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA). Results: A nine-cluster solution was chosen. All clusters included adolescents with impairment and long-term health conditions. Perceived importance of peer relations was more important than frequent attendance in domestic-life activities. Frequency of participation in dialogues and family interaction patterns seemed to affect the participation profiles more than factors related to body functions. Conclusion: Type of impairment or long-term health condition is a weaker determinant of membership in clusters depicting frequency and perceived importance in domestic life or peer relations than dialogue and family environment.

Keywords:

• Participation pattern
• everyday functioning
• ICF-CY
• person-oriented method
• cluster analysis

Acknowledgments

The authors thank the students and school staff who participated and facilitated this study, as well as the research assistants who assisted in the data collection within the LoRDIA research program.

Declaration of interest

The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.

Notes

¹ “Areas of domestic life include acquiring a place to live, food, clothing and other necessities, household cleaning and repairing, caring for personal and other household objects, and assisting others” (ICF-CY, p. 167).

² According to the ICF-CY, chapters 6–9 in the activity and participation component concern life areas and contexts and can be referred to as participation (WHO²⁶).

³ Chapter 7 within the ICF-CY concerns “/…/ carrying out the actions and tasks required for basic and complex interactions with people such as strangers, friends, relatives and family members in a contextually and socially appropriate manner “(ICF-CY, p. 173).

Additional information

Funding

A major financial contribution was granted in a combined decision (No. 259-2012-25) from four Swedish research foundations: The Swedish Research Council (VR); The Swedish Research Council for Health, Working Life and Welfare (FORTE); Sweden’s Innovation Agency (VINNOVA); and The Swedish Research Council Formas.