Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Perceived importance and satisfaction with physical function in patients with knee osteoarthritis

  • Published:
Annals of Behavioral Medicine

Abstract

This investigation examined the determinants of satisfaction with physical function for participants in an Observational Arthritis Study in Seniors (OASIS). The sample consisted of 480 men (51%) and women (49%) over the age of 65 years who had difficulty performing activities of daily living due to knee pain. As part of baseline testing for OASIS, participants completed a measure that assessed satisfaction with function for six physical activities. After controlling for relevant covariates, scores on the satisfaction index were regressed on seven conceptually relevant predictor variables. The results revealed that satisfaction with physical function is a distinct construct from level of function, irrespective of whether the latter variable is measured objectively or subjectively. When entered into a hierarchical regression model, 6-minute walk test data accounted for 11% of the variance in satisfaction scores, whereas perceived difficulty accounted for an additional 22%. Moreover, a significant interaction term between importance and perceived difficulty revealed that patients who rated the activities as important and who had high levels of perceived difficulty had the lowest satisfaction scores. Discussion focuses on the determinants of satisfaction with physical function with emphasis on the interaction between perceived difficulty and importance.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Shumaker SA, Anderson RT, Czajkowski SM: Psychological aspects of HRQOL measurement: Tests and scales. In Spiker B (ed),Quality of Life Assessments in Clinical Trials. New York: Raven Press, 1990, 95–113.

    Google Scholar 

  2. Shumaker SA, Naughton MJ: The international assessment of health-related quality of life: A theoretical perspective. In Shumaker SA, Berzon R (eds),International Assessment of Health-Related Quality of Life: Theory Translation, Measurement and Analysis. England: Oxford Press, 1995, 3–10.

    Google Scholar 

  3. Wenger NK, Furberg CD: Cardiovascular disorders. In Spiker B (ed),Quality of Life Assessments in Clinical Trials. New York: Raven Press, 1990, 335–345.

    Google Scholar 

  4. Sutherland HJ, Lockwood GA, Boyd NF: Ratings of the importance of quality of life variables: Therapeutic implications for patients with metastatic breast cancer.Journal of Clinical Epidemiology. 1990,7:661–666.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Patrick DL, Danis M, Southerland LI, Hong G: Quality of life following intensive care.Journal of General Internal Medicine. 1988,3:218–223.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Nicassio PM, Wallston KA, Callahan LF, Herbert M, Pincus T: The measurement of helplessness in rheumatoinal arthritis: The development of the arthritis helplessness index.Journal of Rheumatology. 1985,12:462–467.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Pincus T, Summey JA, Soraci SA, et al: Assessment of patient satisfaction in activities of daily living using a modified Stanford Health Assessment Questionnaire.Arthritis and Rheumatism. 1983,26:1346–1453.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Rejeski WJ, Ettinger WH, Shumaker S, et al: Assessing performance-related disability in patients with knee osteoarthritis.Osteoarthritis and Cartilage. 1994,3:157–167.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Feinstein AR, Josephy BR, Wells CK: Scientific and clinical problems in indexes of functional disability.Annals of Internal Medicine. 1986,105:413–420.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Diener E: Subjective well-being.Psychological Bulletin. 1984,95:542–575.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Lazarus RS, Folkman S:Stress, Appraisal, and Coping. New York: Springer, 1984.

    Google Scholar 

  12. Stewart AL, King AC: Conceptualizing and measuring quality of life in older populations. In Abeles RP, Gift HC, Ory MG (eds),Aging and Quality of Life. New York: Springer, 1994, 27–54.

    Google Scholar 

  13. Mitchell A, Guyatt G, Singer J, et al: Quality of life in patients with inflammatory bowel disease.Journal of Clinical Gastroenterology. 1988,10:306–310.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. Zautra AJ, Manne SL: Coping with rheumatoid arthritis: A review of a decade of research.Annals of Behavioral Medicine. 1992,14:31–39.

    Google Scholar 

  15. Hampson SE, Glasgow RE, Zeiss AM: Coping with osteoarthritis by older adults.Arthritis Care and Research. 1996,9:133–141.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  16. Lazarus RS: Progress on a cognitive-motivational-relational theory of emotion.American Psychologist. 1991,46:819–834.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  17. Lazarus RS: Coping theory and research: Past, present, and future.Psychosomatic Medicine. 1993,55:234–247.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  18. Haley SM, Coster WJ, Binda-Sundberg K: Measuring physical disablement: The contextual challenge.Physical Therapy. 1994,74:443–451.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  19. Moos RH: Coping with acute health crises. In Millon T, Green C, Meagher R (eds),Handbook of Clinical Health Psychology. New York: Plenum, 1982, 129–151.

    Google Scholar 

  20. Feather NT: Values, valences, and choices: The influence of values on the perceived attractiveness and choice of alternatives.Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. 1995,68:1135–1151.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. Feather NT: Bridging the gap between values and actions: Recent applications of the expectancy-value model. In Higgins ET, Sorrentino RM (eds),Handbook of Motivation and Cognition: Foundations of Social Behavior (Vol. 2). New York: Guilford Press, 1990, 151–192.

    Google Scholar 

  22. Feather NT: Values, valences, expectations, and actions.Journal of Social Issues. 1992,48:109–124.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  23. Festinger LA:A Theory of Cognitive Dissonance. New York: Row Peterson, 1957.

    Google Scholar 

  24. Gill TM, Feinstein AR: A critical appraisal of the quality of quality-of-life measurements.Journal of the American Medical Association. 1994,272:619–631.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  25. Coscarelli Schag CA, Heinrich RL: Development of a comprehensive quality of life measurement tool: CARES.Oncology. 1990,4:135–138.

    Google Scholar 

  26. Hadorn CC, Hays RD: Multitrait-multimethod analysis of health-related quality-of-life measures.Medical Care. 1991,29:829–840.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  27. Lomas J, Pickard L, Mohide A: Patient versus clinician item generation for quality-of-life measures.Medical Care. 1987,25:764–768.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  28. Tugwell P, Bombardier C, Buchanan WW, et al: Methotrexate in rheumatoid arthritis: Impact on quality of life assessed by traditional standard-item and individualized patient preference health status questionnaire.Archives of Internal Medicine. 1990,150:59–62.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  29. Ettinger WH, Burns R, Messier SP, et al: A randomized trial comparing aerobic exercise and resistance exercise with a health education program in older adults with knee osteoarthritis.Journal of the American Medical Association. 1997,277:25–31.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  30. Rejeski WJ, Shumaker S: Knee osteoarthritis and health-related quality of life.Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise. 1994,26:1441–1445.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  31. Altman R, Fries JF, Block DA, et al: Radiographic assessment of pregression in osteoarthritis.Arthritis and Rheumatism. 1987,30: 1214–1225.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  32. Bandura A:Social Foundations of Thought and Action: A Social Cognitive Theory. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1986.

    Google Scholar 

  33. Rejeski WJ, Ettinger WH, Shumaker S, et al: The evaluation of pain in patients with knee osteoarthritis.Journal of Rheumatology. 1995,22:1124–1129.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  34. RAND Corporation:RAND 36-Item Health Survey. San Monica, CA: RAND Corporation, 1992.

    Google Scholar 

  35. Andrews FM, Withey SB:Social Indicators of Well Being: Americans' Perceptions of Life Quality. New York: Plenum Press, 1976.

    Google Scholar 

  36. Afifu AA, Clark V:Computer-Aided Multivariate Analysis (2nd Ed.). New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1990.

    Google Scholar 

  37. Learner DJ, Levine S: Health-related quality of life: Origins, gaps, and directions. In Albrecht G, Fitzpatrick R (eds),Advances in Medical Sociology: Quality of Life in Health Care (Vol. 5). Greenwich, CT: JAI Press, 1994, 43–65.

    Google Scholar 

  38. Blalock SJ, DeVillis BM, DeVillis RF, et al: Psychological well-being among people with recently diagnosed rheumatoid arthritis. Do self-perceptions of abilities make a difference?Arthritis and Rheumatism. 1992,35:1267–1272.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  39. Folkman S: Personal control and stress and coping processes: A theoretical analysis.Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. 1984,46:839–852.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  40. Brown GK, Nicassio PM, Wallston KA: Pain coping strategies and depression in rheumatoid arthritis.Pain. 1987,31:53–64.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  41. Folkman S, Lazarus RS, Dunkel-Schetter C, Delongis A, Gruen RJ: Dynamics of a stressful encounter: Cognitive appraisal, coping, and encounter outcomes.Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. 1986,50:992–1003.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  42. Zimmer Z, Hickey T, Searle MS: The pattern of change in leisure activity behavior among older adults with arthritis.The Gerontologist. 1997,3:384–392.

    Google Scholar 

  43. Martin K: Validation of the PASE in older adults with physical disability.Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise (in press, 1998).

  44. Lorig K, Holman H: Arthritis self-management studies: A twelve-year review.Health Education Quarterly. 1993,20:17–28.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  45. Keefe FJ, Caldwell DS, Williams D, et al: Pain coping skills training in the management of osteoarthritis knee pain: A comparative study.Behavioral Therapy. 1990,21:49–62.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  46. Rejeski WJ, Craven T, Ettinger WH, McFarlane M, Shumaker SA: Self-efficacy and pain in disability with osteoarthritis of the knee.Journal of Gerontology. 1996,51B:P24-P29.

    Google Scholar 

  47. Friedman HS, Booth-Kewley S: The disease prone personality: A meta-analytic view of the construct.American Psychologist. 1987,42:539–555.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Health and Exercise Science, Wake Forest University, Box 7868, 27109, Winston-Salem, NC

    W. Jack Rejeski, Kathleen A. Martin, Michael E. Miller, Walter H. Ettinger & Stephen Rapp

Authors
  1. W. Jack Rejeski
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Kathleen A. Martin
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Michael E. Miller
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Walter H. Ettinger
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Stephen Rapp
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Additional information

Preparation of this manuscript was supported in part by a grant from the National Institute on Aging #21208114616.

About this article

Cite this article

Rejeski, W.J., Martin, K.A., Miller, M.E. et al. Perceived importance and satisfaction with physical function in patients with knee osteoarthritis. ann. behav. med. 20, 141–148 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02884460

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02884460

Keywords

Search

Navigation