Self-efficacy and age associated with disability acceptance trajectories in hypertensive intracerebral hemorrhage patients

BackgroundPsychological adaptation to acquired disability, conceptualized as disability acceptance, is crucial for recovery after hypertensive intracerebral hemorrhage (HICH). However, the longitudinal course of disability acceptance remains unclear.ObjectiveThis study aimed to model the developmental trajectory of disability acceptance over six months post-discharge in HICH patients and to examine the effects of self-efficacy (time-varying) and age (time-invariant) on this trajectory.MethodsA prospective longitudinal study was conducted with 114 HICH patients. Disability acceptance and self-efficacy were assessed at discharge (T0), 1 month (T1), 3 months (T2), and 6 months (T3) post-discharge. Unconditional and conditional latent growth models (LGMs) were fitted to the data to identify the optimal growth form and to test the predictive effects of covariates.ResultsThe optimal trajectory was nonlinear, showing initial growth then stabilization. Self-efficacy showed a strong, time-specific positive association with concurrent disability acceptance (β: 0.522-0.562, p < 0.001). Age positively predicted the rate of change (slope: β= 0.309, p < 0.01) but not the initial level.ConclusionDisability acceptance in HICH evolves dynamically early on. Self-efficacy consistently supports acceptance, whereas age is associated with the speed of improvement. Early interventions targeting self-efficacy could optimize psychological recovery.