The Contribution of Self-Efficacy, Autonomy, Autonomy-Supportive Parenting, Familial Support, and Sense of Community Belonging to the Psychological Well-Being of People with Mental Disorders

Individuals with severe mental illness face numerous challenges related to improving their health, quality of life, rights, and overall well-being. Research consistently shows that perceived mental well-being among this population is significantly lower than in the general population. Previous studies have also demonstrated positive associations between perceived self-efficacy, perceived autonomy, sense of belonging, autonomy-supportive parental practices, and perceived mental well-being—both in the general population and among individuals with severe mental illness. Moreover, perceived mental well-being has been shown to positively influence the lifestyle and functioning of people living with severe mental illness. The purpose of the present study was to examine the relationships between perceived self-efficacy, perceived autonomy, autonomy-supportive parental practice, perceived family support, and sense of community belonging, and the perceived mental well-being of individuals with severe mental illness. The study was guided by the integrative model of Self-Determination Theory (Deci & Ryan, 2000), which identifies three basic psychological needs—autonomy, competence, and relatedness—that shape mental well-being. The research hypotheses proposed that higher levels of perceived self-efficacy, perceived autonomy, autonomy-supportive parental practice, perceived family support, and community belonging would be associated with higher perceived mental well-being. In addition, the study examined the mediating roles of perceived autonomy and perceived self-efficacy in the relationship between autonomy-supportive parental practice and perceived mental well-being. The study employed a quantitative, cross-sectional correlational design. Self-report questionnaires were distributed using a snowball sampling method via social networks to 150 adult participants,      men and women, all of whom were diagnosed with severe mental illness and were receiving psychiatric rehabilitation services. Participants completed a demographic questionnaire, a mental well-being scale, a self-efficacy scale, a perceived family support scale, a perceived autonomy scale, a parental autonomy-support scale, and a sense-of-community-belonging questionnaire. Statistical analyses included bivariate tests (Pearson correlations and t-tests), Spearman correlations for ordinal variables, ANOVA tests, linear regression analysis, and mediation analyses. Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS Version 23 and the PROCESS v3.4 macro for mediation testing. The findings revealed that perceived self-efficacy, perceived autonomy, autonomy-supportive parental practice, perceived family support, and sense of community belonging were all significantly associated with perceived mental well-being among individuals with severe mental illness. Regression analysis showed that perceived self-efficacy, autonomy-supportive parental practice, and sense of community belonging significantly and positively contributed to the explanation of variance in perceived mental well-being. Mediation analysis further indicated that perceived self-efficacy partially mediated the relationship between autonomy-supportive parental practice and perceived mental well-being. Conclusions: This study is among the first to examine, through the framework of Self-Determination Theory, the factors associated with perceived mental well-being among individuals with severe mental illness. The findings highlight the central importance of perceived self-efficacy, perceived autonomy, autonomy-supportive parental practice, perceived family support, and sense of community belonging in shaping mental well-being in this population. It is therefore recommended to develop services and interventions that strengthen these factors among individuals with severe mental illness. Insights from this study may support service providers in enhancing mental well-being and in building support systems that promote self-efficacy, autonomy, supportive parenting practices, family support, and community belonging. These contributions enrich the existing literature and underscore key elements that may improve the well-being of people with severe mental illness. Nonetheless, further studies with larger and more representative samples, particularly in Israel, as well as studies focusing on specific subgroups within this population, are needed to develop more tailored and effective interventions.