Quality of Life as Defined by Chinese Americans with Disabilities: Implications for Rehabilitation Services

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to explore dimensions of quality of life (QOL) perceived by Chinese Americans with disabilities with reference to improve vocational rehabilitation services to this group. Forty-three Chinese Americans/immigrants with physical disabilities participated in the study. A focus group technique was used to collect data. The participants identified the following nine dimensions of QOL: (1) contributing to society; (2) self-reliance; (3) enjoying the same rights as others; (4) not having to worry about food, clothing, housing, and transportation; (5) physical health; (6) emotional health; (7) relationships; (8) individual safety; and (9) stability and prosperity of the nation. Participants also defined six problems that prevented them from living a good life. Implications of the results for rehabilitation counselors and researchers are discussed in light of the impact of Chinese culture and immigration on the QOL of Chinese Americans/immigrants with disabilities.

Predictors of quality of life for chronic stroke survivors in relation to cultural differences: a literature review

“…As to the clinically related factors, poor residual physical function, impaired cognitive function and depression/anxiety were negatively related to the QoL after stroke in both Chinese and Western countries. Functional independence, categorised in physical function, was also an important predictor in Chinese stroke survivors, but it should be noted that the motivation to be self‐reliant was linked to avoiding being a burden on the in‐group in collectivistic cultures, compared with self‐autonomy in individualistic cultures . Other predictors, such as social participation, social support and positive self‐perception, improved QoL in both Chinese and Western stroke survivors in the similar way.…”

“…For the Chinese, group membership is fundamentally significant, as harmony with all others and a lack of self‐centredness, respect for parents and loyalty to family are the important teachings of Confucianism , which has influenced Chinese people for about two thousand years. Family ties are important for the QoL of Chinese people , and family relations have a stronger effect than health and economic status on subjective well‐being for elderly Chinese people . Family members play a vital role in providing emotional and material support for their aged relatives , and this is considered to be more important than support from other sources .…”

“…Not adult stroke patients(6) • Not predictors reported(20) • For caregivers or spouses(11) • Not countries included(25) • Reviews (2)• Thesis (1) • Validation test of questionnaire (8) Review of retrieved articles (n = 132) Excluded: (n = 22) • Not predictors reported (6) • Not multiple regression analysis utilised (11) • Less than 6 months after stroke (4) • Not valid questionnaire utilised (1) Included articles (n = 37) References, related articles (n = 6) China (n = 6) Studies from Western Countries (n = 31) CNKI (n = 24) Wanfang Data (n = 57) Screening of titles and abstracts (n = 63) Duplications removed (n = 18) Included articles (n = 6)…”

Quality of life of individuals with spinal cord injury: A review of conceptualization, measurement, and research findings

“…Qualitative research has been used to find domains of life that affect well-being or subjective QoL for people with SCI [144][145][146][147]. Salient QoL issues that are absent from most or even all HRQoL measures include freedom from pain, societal attitudes toward people with a disability, fmancial security [147], stigma, accessibility [146], opportunities to contribute to society, equality of rights, individual safety, and stability and prosperity of the nation [148], Surprisingly, tnany of these issues are not so much characteristics of individuals, but of the world in which they live. A whole field of study deals witb tbe QoL of cities, states, and otber political entities, which started witb tbe first nation-to-nation comparisons of gross national product per caput by economists and, in faet, gave rise, through tbe social indieators methodology, to the individual QoL approaches covered in this paper.…”

Calidad de vida, calidad de servicios y vida independiente en personas con discapacidad física y sensorial

“…Es el caso de una investigación de Hampton y Chang (1999) en la que intervinieron personas chino-americanas con discapacidad que identificaron nueve dimensiones de calidad de vida: (1) contribuir a la sociedad; (2) independencia; (3) disfrutar de los mismos derechos que otros; (4) no tener que preocuparse por la comida, ropa, vivienda o transporte; (5) salud física; (6) salud emocional; (7) relaciones; (8) seguridad individual y (9) estabilidad y prosperidad de la nación (Hampton y Chang, 1999).…”