Heterogeneity in social participation among young people with vision impairment

Eline CM Heppe*, Chris van Klaveren, Ilja Cornelisz, Carlo Schuengel, Sabina Kef

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

Young people may adapt to vision impairment (VI) in a variety of ways. To explore heterogeneity in social participation, data were mined for distinct patterns. Existing data from 258 young people with VI, aged between 26 and 44 years ( M = 35.3 years; SD = 5.07), were clustered. Social participation was measured by four closed-ended questions and the Social Network Map. Loneliness was measured by the De Jong Gierveld Loneliness scale. K-medoids clustering with the Partitioning Around Medoids (PAM) algorithm was used to cluster social participation variables and age.Eight clusters were identified, with participants in the two largest clusters, clusters 1 ( n = 84) and 2 ( n = 50), scoring high on almost all social participation outcomes. Participants in cluster 8 ( n = 14) had the lowest social participation scores. However, also over half of the participants in clusters 4, 5, 6, and 7 experienced feelings of loneliness. Findings demonstrate considerable heterogeneity in social participation among young people with VI, which however does not link to loneliness. These variations in social participation underline the need for a differentiated approach to address needs of young people with VI.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)599-611
Number of pages13
JournalBritish Journal of Visual Impairment
Volume42
Issue number3
Early online date3 Feb 2023
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Sept 2024

Keywords

  • Characteristics of VI
  • cluster analysis
  • heterogeneity
  • loneliness
  • social participation
  • vision impairment
  • young adults

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