Affective experiences during daily occupations: measurement and results

Occupation is the medium of occupational therapy. It is believed that people maintain a rhythmic balance of life through participation in daily occupation. In this study, the affective experiences of 60 subjects during daily occupations were measured using a diary-log recording which had acceptable internal consistency and test–retest reliability. It was found that a week's daily occupational affective experiences were stable over two months, with no significant difference between males and females. The content or orchestration of daily occupations might affect the pattern of affective experiences during a week. Happy and unhappy experiences during daily occupations were negatively correlated. The implications for occupational therapy are discussed. Copyright © 2000 Whurr Publishers Ltd.