Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Making Meaning of Acquired Brain Injury: Resources for Functional Recovery

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Neurobiological and Psychological Aspects of Brain Recovery

Part of the book series: Contemporary Clinical Neuroscience ((CCNE))

  • 402 Accesses

Abstract

This chapter presents a model of meaning and coping that highlights the centrality of meaning appraisal and coping in adjusting to adverse events. This model is then applied to adaptation to acquired brain injury (ABI) by drawing on relevant theories and empirical findings. The important roles of appraised meanings, violations, coping, and meanings made in promoting functional recovery are detailed. This chapter concludes with ideas drawn from this model to promote innovative treatment strategies for brain injury recovery.

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

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 169.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 219.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 219.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Aldwin C. Stress, coping, and development: an integrative perspective. 2nd ed. New York: Guilford; 2007.

    Google Scholar 

  • Baseotto MC, Morris PG, Gillespie DC, Trevethan CT. Post-traumatic growth and value-directed living after acquired brain injury. Neuropsychol Rehabil. 2020;32:1–20.

    Google Scholar 

  • Beadle EJ, Ownsworth T, Fleming J, Shum DH. Personality characteristics and cognitive appraisals associated with self-discrepancy after severe traumatic brain injury. Neuropsychol Rehabil. 2018;30:393.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Brands IM, Wade DT, Stapert SZ, van Heugten CM. The adaptation process following acute onset disability: an interactive two-dimensional approach applied to acquired brain injury. Clin Rehabil. 2012;26:840–52.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Brands I, Köhler S, Stapert S, Wade D, van Heugten C. Influence of self-efficacy and coping on quality of life and social participation after acquired brain injury: a 1-year follow-up study. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 2014;95:2327–34.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Brands I, Stapert S, Köhler S, Wade D, van Heugten C. Life goal attainment in the adaptation process after acquired brain injury: the influence of self-efficacy and of flexibility and tenacity in goal pursuit. Clin Rehabil. 2015;29:611–22.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Cantor JB, Ashman TA, Schwartz ME, Gordon WA, Hibbard MR, Brown M, Cheng Z, et al. The role of self-discrepancy theory in understanding post-traumatic brain injury affective disorders: a pilot study. J Head Trauma Rehabil. 2005;20:527–43.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Carroll E, Coetzer R. Identity, grief and self-awareness after traumatic brain injury. Neuropsychol Rehabil. 2011;21:289–305.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Collicutt McGrath J, Linley PA. Post-traumatic growth in acquired brain injury: a preliminary small scale study. Brain Inj. 2006;20:767–73.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Doering BK, Conrad N, Rief W, Exner C. Living with acquired brain injury: self-concept as mediating variable in the adjustment process. Neuropsychol Rehabil. 2011;21:42–63.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Evans JJ. Positive psychology and brain injury rehabilitation. Brain Impair. 2011;12:117–27.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fedio AA, Dekarchuk M, Roper C, Sexton J, Dinklocker B, Campbell K, Fedio P. Post-traumatic growth in relation to quality of life in individuals with moderate/severe traumatic brain injury. Arch Clin Neuropsychol. 2021;36(6):1159.

    Google Scholar 

  • Frazier P, Tennen H, Gavian M, Park C, Tomich P, Tashiro T. Does self-reported posttraumatic growth reflect genuine positive change? Psychol Sci. 2009;20:912–9.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Gangstad B, Norman P, Barton J. Cognitive processing and posttraumatic growth after stroke. Rehabil Psychol. 2009;54:69–75.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Godfrey HP, Knight RG, Partridge FM. Emotional adjustment following traumatic brain injury: a stress-appraisal-coping formulation. J Head Trauma Rehabil. 1996;11:29–40.

    Google Scholar 

  • Goldstein M. Traumatic brain injury: a silent epidemic. Ann Neurol. 1990;27:327.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Grace JJ, Kinsella EL, Muldoon OT, Fortune DG. Post-traumatic growth following acquired brain injury: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Front Psychol. 2015;6:1162.

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Gracey F, Palmer S, Rous B, Psaila K, Shaw K, O’Dell J, Mohamed S, et al. “Feeling part of things”: personal construction of self after brain injury. Neuropsychol Rehabil. 2008;18:627–50.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Gracey F, Evans JJ, Malley D. Capturing process and outcome in complex rehabilitation interventions: a “Y-shaped” model. Neuropsychol Rehabil. 2009;19:867–90.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Gregório GW, Brands I, Stapert S, Verhey FR, van Heugten CM. Assessments of coping after acquired brain injury: a systematic review of instrument conceptualization, feasibility, and psychometric properties. J Head Trauma Rehabil. 2014a;29:E30–42.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Gregório GW, Gould KR, Spitz G, van Heugten CM, Ponsford JL. Changes in self-reported pre-to postinjury coping styles in the first 3 years after traumatic brain injury and the effects on psychosocial and emotional functioning and quality of life. J Head Trauma Rehabil. 2014b;29:E43–53.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hart T, Hanks R, Bogner JA, Millis S, Esselman P. Blame attribution in intentional and unintentional traumatic brain injury: longitudinal changes and impact on subjective well-being. Rehabil Psychol. 2007;52:152–61.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jones KF, Pryor J, Care-Unger C, Simpson GK. Spirituality and its relationship with positive adjustment following traumatic brain injury: a scoping review. Brain Inj. 2018;32(13–14):1612–22.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Karoly P. A goal systems-self-regulatory perspective on personality, psychopathology, and change. Rev Gen Psychol. 1999;3:264–91.

    Google Scholar 

  • Klinger E. The search for meaning in evolutionary goal-theory perspective and its clinical implications. In: Wong PP, editor. The human quest for meaning: theories, research, and applications. 2nd ed. New York: Routledge/Taylor & Francis; 2012.

    Google Scholar 

  • Koltko-Rivera ME. The psychology of worldviews. Rev Gen Psychol. 2004;8:3–58.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kuenemund A, Zwick S, Doering BK, Conrad N, Rief W, Exner C. Decline in attainability of communion and agency life goals over 2 years following acquired brain injury and the impact on subjective well-being. Neuropsychol Rehabil. 2013;23:678–97.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Laures-Gore JS, Lambert PL, Kruger AC, et al. Spirituality and post-stroke aphasia recovery. J Religion Health. 2018;57:1876–88.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lazarus RS, Folkman S. Stress, appraisal, and coping. New York: Springer; 1984.

    Google Scholar 

  • Leary MR, Tangney JP. The self as an organizing construct in the behavioral sciences. In: Leary MR, Tangney JP, editors. Handbook of self and identity. New York: Guilford; 2003. p. 3–14.

    Google Scholar 

  • Littooij E, Dekker J, Vloothuis J, Widdershoven G, Leget C. Global meaning and rehabilitation in people with stroke. Brain Impair. 2018;19(2):183–92.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lo Buono V, Corallo F, Bramanti P, Marino S. Coping strategies and health-related quality of life after stroke. J Health Psychol. 2017;22(1):16–28.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • McGrath JC. Posttraumatic growth and spirituality after brain injury. Brain Impair. 2011;12:82–92.

    Google Scholar 

  • Minshall C, Ski CF, Apputhurai P, Thompson DR, Castle DJ, Jenkins Z, Knowles SR. Exploring the impact of illness perceptions, self-efficacy, coping strategies, and psychological distress on quality of life in a post-stroke cohort. J Clin Psychol Med Settings. 2021;28:174–80.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Moore A, Stambrook M. Cognitive moderators of outcome following traumatic brain injury: a conceptual model and implications for rehabilitation. Brain Inj. 1995;9:109–30.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Nelson TA, Abeyta AA, Routledge C. What makes life meaningful for theists and atheists? Psychol Relig Spiritual. 2021;13(1):111–8.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nochi M. Reconstructing self-narratives in coping with traumatic brain injury. Soc Sci Med. 2000;51:1795–804.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Pais-Hrit C, Wong D, Gould KR, Ponsford J. Behavioural and functional correlates of post-traumatic growth following traumatic brain injury. Neuropsychol Rehabili. 2019;30:1205.

    Google Scholar 

  • Park CL. Overview of theoretical perspectives. In: Park CL, Lechner S, Antoni MH, Stanton A, editors. Positive life change in the context of medical illness: can the experience of serious illness lead to transformation? Washington, DC: American Psychological Association; 2009. p. 11–30.

    Google Scholar 

  • Park CL. Making sense of the meaning literature: an integrative review of meaning-making and its effects on adjustment to stressful life events. Psychol Bull. 2010;136:257–301.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Park CL, Folkman S. Meaning in the context of stress and coping. Rev Gen Psychol. 1997;1:115–44.

    Google Scholar 

  • Park CL, Riley KE, George L, Gutierrez I, Hale A, Cho D, Braun T. Assessing disruptions in meaning: Development of the Global Meaning Violation Scale. Cognit Ther Res. 2016;40:831–46.

    Google Scholar 

  • Peng ZY, Wan LH. Posttraumatic growth of stroke survivors and its correlation with rumination and social support. J Neurosci Nurs. 2018;50(4):252–7.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Pucciarelli G, Vellone E, Bolgeo T, Simeone S, Alvaro R, Lee CS, Lyons KS. Role of spirituality on the association between depression and quality of life in stroke survivor-care partner dyads. Circulation. 2020;13(6):e006129.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rogan C, Fortune DG, Prentice G. Post-traumatic growth, illness perceptions and coping in people with acquired brain injury. Neuropsychol Rehabil. 2013;23:639–57.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Scheenen ME, van der Horn HJ, de Koning ME, van der Naalt J, Spikman JM. Stability of coping and the role of self-efficacy in the first year following mild traumatic brain injury. Soc Sci Med. 2017;181:184–90.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Snell DL, Hay-Smith EJC, Surgenor LJ, Siegert RJ. Examination of outcome after mild traumatic brain injury: the contribution of injury beliefs and Leventhal’s common sense model. Neuropsychol Rehabil. 2013;23:333–62.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Steger MF, Owens GP, Park CL. Violations of war: testing the meaning-making model among military veterans. J Clin Psychol. 2015;71:105–16.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Stocchetti N, Zanier ER. Chronic impact of traumatic brain injury on outcome and quality of life: a narrative review. Crit Care. 2016;20(1):148.

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Thompson SC, Bundek NI, Sobolew-Shubin A. The caregivers of stroke patients: an investigation of factors associated with depression. J Appl Soc Psychol. 1990;20:115–29.

    Google Scholar 

  • Williams WH, Evans JJ, Needham P, Wilson BA. Neurological, cognitive and attributional predictors of posttraumatic stress symptoms after traumatic brain injury. J Trauma Stress. 2002;15:397–400.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Zhang W, Liu Z, Zhou X, Zhou L. Resilience among stroke survivors: a cohort study of the first 6 months. J Adv Nurs. 2020;76(2):504–13.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA

    Crystal L. Park

Authors
  1. Crystal L. Park
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Crystal L. Park .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Santa Lucia Foundation IRCCS, Rome, Italy

    Laura Petrosini

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2023 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG

About this chapter

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

Park, C.L. (2023). Making Meaning of Acquired Brain Injury: Resources for Functional Recovery. In: Petrosini, L. (eds) Neurobiological and Psychological Aspects of Brain Recovery. Contemporary Clinical Neuroscience. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-24930-3_15

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation