Hopeful thinking, participation, and depressive symptoms three months after stroke

This study was designed to examine hopeful thinking, depressive symptoms, and participation in meaningful activities and roles for survivors 3 months after stroke. It was predicted that: (a) participation would predict lower depressive symptoms; (b) higher hopeful thinking (i.e., beliefs in one's goal pursuit abilities) would predict lower depressive symptoms; and (c) higher hopeful thinking would predict better participation. Three months after stroke, 110 participants completed measures of disability, participation, depressive symptoms, and hopeful thinking. Contrary to the first hypothesis, participation did not independently predict depressive symptoms after controlling for more basic activity limitations (physical, memory, communication). As predicted, hopeful thinking was the strongest predictor of depressive symptoms. Hopeful thinking did not directly predict participation, but it moderated relationships of activity functioning to participation. Results suggest that participation and hopeful thinking may contribute to the understanding of post-stroke depressive symptoms, although additional research is needed to further elucidate such contributions.