Participation self-efficacy plays a mediation role in the association between mobility and social participation among stroke survivors

Background: Mobility is a major determinant of social participation after stroke and the relationship between the two may be mediated by participation self-efficacy. Objective: To investigate the hypothesis that participation self-efficacy mediates the association between mobility and social participation among stroke survivors. Methods: A secondary data analysis of a cross-sectional study aiming to validate the Chinese version of the Participation Strategies Self-Efficacy Scale was conducted. Three hundred and thirty-six stroke survivors were recruited. With mobility as the predictor variable and social participation as the outcome, path analysis was utilized to assess the mediating effect of participation self-efficacy on the association between the two factors. Results: Mobility was significantly associated with social participation (B=2.773, p<0.001) and participation self-efficacy (B=6.060, p<0.001). After adjusting for mobility, participation self-efficacy was significantly associated with social participation. The association between mobility and social participation was mediated by participation self-efficacy. Conclusions: When aiming to improve stroke survivor community reintegration, interventions targeted at boosting participation self-efficacy must be considered given its beneficial mediatory effect on mobility and social participation.