Health professionals have urged studies to measure people’s “happiness” by assessing their satisfaction with life, a component of subjective well-being. This study adds to prior research by identifying additional satisfaction factors with psychosocial life functioning in adults with MS (PwMS). For a study, researchers sought to determine which clinical, social, and demographic factors influenced PwMS satisfaction with functioning in psychosocial life areas. They used the Successful Employment and Quality Work Life After Severe Disability data set, a study conducted by the Medical University of South Carolina’s Center for Rehabilitation Research in Neurological Conditions and the Shepherd Center in Atlanta, Georgia. The dependent variable was the Quality of Life Scale, a 7-item scale established for patients with chronic pain to assess satisfaction with functioning in psychosocial life areas and later validated with PwMS. There were 1,332 PwMS in the sample. Investigators utilized stepwise regressions to find the best model fit and included variables grouped by the concept: model 1, age-related factors; model 2, MS and health variables; model 3, social and demographic variables; and model 4, all variables. They looked at satisfaction variables in both linear and curved connections. In model 4, a diagnosis of MS at 40 years or older, more severe MS symptoms, lower cognitive function, being a wheelchair user, poorer physical health status, poorer mental health status, being single, and being male were all associated with lower satisfaction scores. Higher levels of education and employment were linked to higher levels of contentment. Mental health status was the strongest predictor of satisfaction of all the variables. In predicting satisfaction, Model 4 explained 43.0% of the variance. For people with MS, satisfaction with functioning in psychosocial life areas could be a good, easy-to-measure sign of subjective well-being or “happy.” Compared to earlier studies, the outcomes discovered new predictors of satisfaction and suggested that poor physical and mental health lowers contentment. The results highlighted the relevance of employment and social support for people with disabilities. These data supported mental health therapies for PwMS, such as therapy and support groups. Self-management therapies might also be beneficial since they teach people how to manage their symptoms and reduce their severity.
