The role of meaning in life: mediating the effects of perceived knowledge of stroke on depression and life satisfaction among stroke survivors.
Esther Ow Chow
PMID 28516810WHAT IT FOUND
Among 192 older stroke survivors, higher perceived knowledge of stroke was linked to fewer depressive symptoms and greater life satisfaction.
Meaning in life appeared to carry this link. These were baseline data, so giving information was not shown to cause improvement.
Key findings
01Perceived knowledge of stroke was positively associated with meaning in life (r = 0.37), negatively associated with depressive symptoms (r = -0.32), and positively associated with life satisfaction (r = 0.35).
02Meaning in life was negatively associated with depressive symptoms (r = -0.51) and positively associated with life satisfaction (r = 0.47).
03In the mediation analysis, meaning in life was a complete mediator for both outcomes (Sobel z = -3.71 for depressive symptoms, P < 0.001; z = 3.97 for life satisfaction, P < 0.001), and perceived knowledge was no longer significant after it was included.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
The analysis used baseline data, so it cannot show that giving stroke information changes depression or life satisfaction. Participants were mostly independent in daily activities and had moderate to high cognitive function, so the results may not apply to stroke survivors with severe physical or cognitive impairment. Stroke knowledge was measured as perceived understanding on a self-devised 8-item scale, not as tested factual knowledge. The paper reports only baseline associations from a randomized trial of narrative group therapy; it does not report the trial's treatment effects. The finding that survivors with caregivers had more depressive symptoms was not explained or tested as a causal relationship.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that giving stroke survivors more information reduces depression or improves life satisfaction. This paper measured perceived knowledge and meaning at baseline and did not test an education intervention.