Happiness and satisfaction with life among individuals with mobility disability – does self-efficacy matter?

Background: Psychological well-being is a superordinate construct that subsumes other constructs such as satisfaction with life and happiness. Having a mobility disability might negatively affect individual’s subjective outcomes of psychological well-being, it becomes important to identify his internal strenghts and resources. Self-efficacy is one of key resources in coping with the challenges and demands presented by a chronic condition or disability. Aim: This study aimed to investigate the importance of general self-efficacy on happiness and satisfaction with life, as perceived by mobility impaired individuals. Method: The study sample was consisted of 223 individuals with mobility disabilities (81 men and 142 women), aged between 18 and 66. Self-efficacy was assessed using General Self-Efficacy scale [1]. Satisfaction with life was measured using Satisfaction With Life Scale [2] and happiness was assessed with Subjective Happiness Scale [3]. Results: The results revealed that male respondents reported having higher general selfefficacy than female but there were no significant gender differences in satisfaction with life and happiness. Younger individuals also reported higher scores of general self-efficacy, satisfaction with life and happiness. Regardless of gender or age, participants with higher general self-efficacy reported significantly higher scores of subjective happiness and satisfaction with life compared to participants with lower self-efficacy. Conclusions: These results confirm general self-efficacy being very important to individual‘ s psychological well-being – it is significantly related to subjective happiness and satisfaction with life for people with mobility disabilities. Self-efficacy enhancing interventions and activities might improve the outcomes of psychological well-being for mobility impaired individuals during and post-rehabilitation periodPsichologijos katedraVytauto Didžiojo universiteta