| There is evidence to support the relationship between engaging in leisure activities and decreased depression, decreased mortality, delay of onset of cognitive deficits, and successful aging for older adults. Despite this demonstrated relationship between participation in leisure activities and health and well-being, there is limited information about leisure experiences of older adults with vision loss. Through repeated interviews and participant observation, this study explored the lived experience of twenty six older adults living with acquired vision loss and their strategies and barriers to leisure participation. The International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health was used as a framework with its focus on participation and the many influencing factors while the development and analysis of this study was guided by Lawton and Nahemow's Press-Competence model.;Results show that the individual's studied engage in leisure to stay current, be social, enjoy the activity, be generative, and pass time. Notably, participants spend more time engaged in activities to pass time than they would like and have less time and energy to engage in activities to stay social, to be current, for enjoyment, and to be generative. Results also demonstrate that participants alter their environment and/or use their personal competence to find the right fit and engage in leisure within the home. Specifically, the strategies of using other people, improving lighting, utilizing optical devices, and adding contrast, tactile and task adaptations were used frequently. The personal factors that were important to successful leisure participation included hearing, memory, touch, and self-efficacy. Despite the ability to engage in leisure within the home, there was a strong mismatch between environmental and personal factors that limited leisure participation outside of the home. Specifically, few transportation options and inaccessible built environments limited engagement in leisure that occurred in the community. Struggles with personal competence in the areas of increased vulnerability, and decreased emotional energy, assertiveness, and readiness for services were also evident. The interaction of high environmental demands and low personal competence limited leisure outside the home for those with vision loss. Implications for older adults, clinical practice, policy, and research are discussed. |
