Differences in participation based on self-esteem in power and manual wheelchair users on a university campus: A pilot study

Objectives: To examine the relationship of self-esteem and wheelchair type with participation of young adult manual and power wheelchair users with diverse physical disabilities. Design: Cross-sectional survey study. Setting: Large University Campus. Participants: A convenience sample of college students (N=39) with self-reported physical disabilities who are full time wheelchair users (>40 per week) and are two or more years post illness or injury. Interventions: Not applicable. Main outcome measures: The Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale was used to measure self-esteem, and the Craig Handicap Assessment and Reporting Technique was used to measure participation. Results: Self-esteem correlated highly with cognitive independence (CI) (r=0.58), mobility (r=0.67) and social integration (SI) (r=0.52). Use of manual wheelchair was significantly related to higher levels of CI and mobility while longer use of any wheelchair (power or manual) was significantly associated with higher levels of mobility and SI. In addition higher self-esteem independently predicted a significant proportion of the variance in CI, mobility and SI, while type of wheelchair predicted a significant proportion of the variance in CI (p<0.005). Conclusions: High self-esteem was found to be the strongest predictor of participation in a population of young adults with mobility limitations. Better understanding of the factors influencing participation may help to facilitate new interventions to minimize the disparities between persons with disabilities and their able bodied peers.