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  • Adults with disabilities who reported excellent or good quality of life had established a balance of body, mind, and spirit

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Qualitative
Adults with disabilities who reported excellent or good quality of life had established a balance of body, mind, and spirit

https://doi.org/10.1136/ebn.3.1.31

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    Albrecht GL, Devlieger PJ.The disability paradox: high quality of life against all odds.Soc Sci Med1999 Apr;48:977–88

    QUESTION: How do adults with disabilities understand and describe their quality of life in relation to physical and social environments?

    Design

    Qualitative approach using semistructured interviews.

    Setting

    Chicago, Illinois, USA.

    Participants

    153 adults (median age 53 y, 51% women, 45% African-American, 50% single and never married, 51% high school graduates, 62% living with others) with a disability (arthritis, spinal cord injury or paralysis, cerebral palsy, multiple sclerosis, orthopaedic conditions, head injury, HIV, AIDS, heart conditions, eye or vision problems, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, diabetes mellitus, chronic pain, addiction, or mental illness). The sample was generated through contacts in community based disability groups, government benefit agencies, shelters for the homeless, and acute hospitals.

    Methods

    Adults were interviewed in English or Spanish for approximately 2.5 hours and responded to open ended …

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    Footnotes

    • Source of funding: in part, by the Award for the Promotion of Human Welfare.

    • For correspondence: Dr G L Albrecht, School of Public Health, University of Illinois, 2035 West Taylor Street, Chicago, IL 60612, USA. Fax +1 312 996 5356.