Development of a Self-Care Educational-Psychological Package Based on Lived Experiences and Its Effectiveness
Keywords:
self-care, lived experiences, job satisfaction, self-compassion, spiritual vitality, young people with sensory and motor impairmentsAbstract
Purpose: The present study aimed to develop a self-care educational–psychological package based on the lived experiences of young people with sensory and motor impairments and to examine its effectiveness on job satisfaction, self-compassion, and spiritual vitality.
Methods and Materials: This study employed an exploratory mixed-methods design conducted in two qualitative and quantitative phases. In the qualitative phase, a phenomenological approach was used to explore the lived experiences of 11 young people with sensory and motor impairments residing in Yazd, Iran. Participants were selected through purposive sampling, and data were collected using in-depth semi-structured interviews. Qualitative data were analyzed using Colaizzi’s thematic analysis method, resulting in the extraction of 189 initial codes and several organizing and overarching themes. Based on the identified themes, a self-care educational–psychological package consisting of ten 90-minute sessions was developed. In the quantitative phase, the effectiveness of the package was evaluated using a pretest–posttest experimental design with a control group. Thirty participants were selected through stratified random sampling and randomly assigned to experimental and control groups (n = 15 per group). Data were collected using the Minnesota Job Satisfaction Questionnaire, Neff’s Self-Compassion Scale, and the Chirean and Afroz Spiritual Vitality Questionnaire. Data were analyzed using analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) in SPSS version 26.
Findings: The qualitative findings identified two overarching themes, namely occupational challenges and failures and occupational strategies among individuals with physical and motor limitations, which formed the foundation of the intervention package. Quantitative findings indicated significant differences between the experimental and control groups following the intervention. ANCOVA results showed that the self-care package significantly improved job satisfaction (F = 18.72, p < .001, η² = .51), self-compassion (F = 15.34, p < .001, η² = .45), and spiritual vitality (F = 22.41, p < .001, η² = .55). The obtained effect sizes demonstrated substantial practical significance, indicating that the intervention accounted for a considerable proportion of variance in all three outcome variables.
Conclusion: The findings suggest that a self-care educational–psychological package developed from the lived experiences of young people with sensory and motor impairments can effectively enhance job satisfaction, self-compassion, and spiritual vitality. Integrating self-care skills, self-compassion training, occupational empowerment strategies, and spirituality-based activities appears to provide a comprehensive framework for promoting psychological well-being and occupational adjustment among individuals with disabilities. The intervention may therefore serve as a valuable resource for rehabilitation centers, counseling services, and programs designed to support the psychological and occupational development of young people with sensory and motor impairments.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Mostafa Abouzari (Author); Mohammad Hossein Asayesh; Mohammad Hossein Fallah Yakhdani (Author)
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