Exploring the relationship between occupational presence, occupational engagement, and people's well‐being

This article examines the broad concepts of occupational presence, occupational engagement, and people's well‐being. Occupational presence is viewed as a mediating variable between occupational engagement and well‐being. The proposal made is that occupational engagement can influence an occupational presence state in people, which in turn can influence their well‐being. Occupational presence is conceptualized as a psychological state of consciousness of being aware of self, engaged in occupation in place. Conscious awareness or mindfulness, and choice are considered to be important factors that contribute to an occupational presence experience. Occupational engagement is conceptualized as being occupied with doing an occupation and is viewed as a powerful determinant of a person's well‐being. Factors that enable or interfere with an occupational presence experience are discussed. Task demands, personal expectations, familiarity, anxiety, and opportunities to have control and make occupational choices all influence occupational presence. A model supported by preliminary research is proposed to guide future research. Ongoing research will contribute to the development of the theoretical concept of occupational presence, and explore the relationships between occupational presence, occupational engagement and well‐being.

Key Words:

• Engagement
• Occupational choice
• Presence
• Well‐being