Satisfactory performance in personally valued roles is known to be
important to a sense of purpose and well-being in everyday life, yet
there is little understanding of how the concept of role might be used
by the role performer. People recovering from stroke frequently do not
resume roles that they previously held and valued, yet this problem is
often not effectively addressed in rehabilitation. This study used the
conceptual framework of the Occupational Performance Model (Australia)
(Chapparo & Ranka, 1997) to examine how a group of men perceived their
own occupational role performance following a disabling stroke.
Inductive analysis of the data showed that participants used the concept
of role to organise their own occupational performance in terms of
meaning, personal abilities and time. This book uses the information
suggested by the data to discuss the nature of occupational role
performance in ways that develop and extend the construct of
occupational performance role as described by Chapparo and Ranka and
other occupational therapy researchers. It is addressed to health
professionals, health educators, and researchers who are working with
people with chronic disability.