Abstract:
One sequela of traumatic brain injury is lack of awareness of deficits. Without awareness, individuals have difficulty recognizing the relevance of rehabilitation. Consequently, they may cooperate with treatment only superficially, or may drop out of treatment altogether. A preliminary study indicated individuals who dropped out of rehabilitation because they did not perceive it as useful were more likely to experience sub-optimal outcomes one year after discharge from inpatient rehabilitation. This study was designed to compare the effectiveness of two brief interventions (motivational interviewing and education) for improving awareness and outcomes. It was found that changes in awareness were similar for individuals who received the motivational interviewing and educational interventions. Further, individuals receiving either intervention were equally likely to stay in treatment until goals were met and to have positive outcomes. Methodological problems limit the generalizability of these findings.