Rehabilitation Potential of Personality in Various Chronic Conditions

Abstract

The paper presents data on general level and expression of components of rehabilitation potential of per¬sonality in such chronic conditions as gastrointestinal and cardiovascular diseases, cancer, HIV/AIDS. It is stated that rehabilitation potential is closely connected with some other personality resources that promote a better rehabilitation and readaptation of patients, e.g. existential fulfillment, optimism, activity, vitality. The paper describes features of rehabilitation potential (in particular, its component — the inner picture of disease) and of several personality dispositions observed in various chronic conditions. As it was revealed, personality resources are most evident in young and middle-aged individuals with gastrointestinal diseases and least evi¬dent in their peers living with HIV/AIDS. Also, a correlation was found between the decrease of personality potential and chemical addiction in persons with HIV/AIDS. Finally, the paper describes a special technique that was developed by the authors in order to define the general index of rehabilitation potential and those of its components — motivational, emotional, self-evaluative communicative components and the inner picture of disease.

Conceptual questions about meaning: Divergence or complementarity between cultural-Historical positions?

“…Valsiner (2012), in turn, uses signs to refer to processes of codification of objects—material and immaterial—through language. Kulagina, (2006) states there are differences between signs and symbols, which prevents us from treating them as synonyms. However, there is a similarity that is crucial for the concept of meanings as approached herein: signs and symbols may manifest meanings that are extended from one object to others.…”