Vocational rehabilitation in northern Sweden. III. Aspects of life satisfaction.

Levels of global (1 item) and domain-specific (8 items) life satisfaction were explored at the commencement of vocational rehabilitation and two years later in a consecutive series of subjects who were partly or completely vocationally disabled with a diagnosis of bodily impairment. At the onset of vocational rehabilitation, global life satisfaction (satisfaction with life as a whole) and satisfaction derived from performance- and provider-related (instrumental) domains of life were significantly lower than satisfaction derived from socio-emotional (expressive) facets of life. The eight domain-specific items of life satisfaction described a characteristic three-factor pattern (76% of variance) which resembled quite closely that of non-impaired subjects, one factor being expressive. The other two factors were instrumental and separated recreative from vocational domains of satisfaction. Successful vocational rehabilitation resulted in increases in vocational satisfaction. For those subjects who were successfully rehabilitated, satisfaction with other instrumental aspects of life and with life as a whole also increased. The results indicate that successful vocational rehabilitation leads to increased social well-being.