The goal of care for paraplegic people is the enhancement of their "well-being". However, despite the frequent use of the term "well-being" its definition remains unclear and there is little information in the literature concerning the paraplegic's own perspective. Twenty paraplegic adults from Songkhla participated in an in-depth interview that employed a natural inquiry methodology. Following the technique of Lincoln & Guba, the interviews were audio-taped, transcribed, and analysed.
Three commonly used meanings of well-being were identified and eight components in the three identified groups were included in the definition. The results also indicated that the meaning of well-being is an individual perception, which includes both objective and subjective values and experiences. The study provides information that is useful for health professionals in the development of specific programmes that will enhance the well-being of paraplegic patients.