[version 1; peer review: awaiting peer review]
No competing interests were disclosed.
Autoimmune diseases often require long-term management and significantly affect patients’ physical and mental health. Conventional management strategies emphasize disease control and symptom relief, notwithstanding, the integration of positive health models such as the flourishing framework remains underexplored.
This protocol outlines a scoping review aimed to map and analyze how the flourishing framework has been applied in research and practice in autoimmune context.
Following the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) methodology for scoping reviews and the PRISMA-ScR guidelines, we will systematically search across multiple databases, including MEDLINE, Scopus, CINAHL, and PsycINFO. Studies will be screened using predetermined eligibility criteria. Data will be extracted and charted using a standardize form and will be analyzed narratively by presenting key characteristics and thematic trends.
The findings from this scoping review will provide a foundational insight into how flourishing is conceptualized, measured, and applied in the context of autoimmune disease. Thus, informing future research and integrative care models.
Autoimmune diseases affect over 50 million people in the United States, with more than 150 types of disease recognized.
Autoimmune disease also remains as major public health concern in Indonesia. The prevalence of type 1 diabetes –an autoimmune condition– in this country was reported at 41,000 cases in 2022,
Autoimmune diseases are characterized by a malfunction of the immune system, resulting in the production of autoantibodies that attack healthy tissues and cause inflammation.
The existing literature draws upon closely related concept such as wellbeing, happiness, and mental health. However, limited study specifically focusing on flourishing among autoimmune population. A study conducted by Kayes
Given the limited empirical exploration of flourishing in the context of autoimmune, this scoping review aims to mapping the existing literature and identifying concept of flourishing as well as identify the research gaps that may beneficial to inform future empirical studies and interventions. Therefore, the objectives of this scoping review were threefold:
To provide an overview of flourishing among autoimmune patients. To summarize and clarify terminology related to the impact of autoimmune diseases on patients. To identify knowledge gaps and suggest directions for future research.
This scoping review protocol methods and analyses followed the five-stages framework developed by Arksey and O’Malley.
The research questions were identified before conducting a scoping review of protocol elements according to the PCC structure. The aim of this study is to identify elements and factors of flourishing that influence the health of patients with autoimmune diseases.
Autoimmune disease can affect any individuals in any age range. However, autoimmune diseases commonly affect individuals in productive age (i.e., 18-64 years; see 1). Therefore, the study population will be specified in this age group.
Autoimmune diseases can be exacerbated under excessive stress.
The search was focus on studies related to individual with autoimmune disease and having history of mental health symptom. This focus reflects the vulnerability of individual with autoimmune to excessive stress and its role on symptom exacerbation.
Based on above mentioned rationale, this scoping review research questions are:
What is the overview of flourishing in autoimmune individuals? What flourishing frameworks are typically found in the context of autoimmune? What knowledge gaps exist regarding flourishing models in individuals with autoimmune conditions?
A systematic searching strategy of relevant studies will be developed in consultation with experts in this field and following the guidelines provided by librarians. The search for articles was conducted on seven databases: ProQuest, Web of Science, ScienceDirect, Taylor & Francis, EBSCO, Sage Journals, and SpringerLink. We aimed to broaden the search strategy to capture as many as studies as possible by including term (flourishing OR well#being OR Happiness) AND (autoimmune) as the keywords, as these terms are conceptually related and grounded in the similar theoretical frameworks. Manual search was also conducted by tracing citation networks and publication years using research mapping tools. Additionally, gray literatures were included to enrich the comprehensiveness of the review. To guide the screening of titles and abstract, inclusion and exclusion criteria were defined at this stage. Further, article duplication was also screened prior to final selection.
Two independent reviewers will screen titles and abstract based on inclusion and exclusion criteria as it can see on the
| Inclusion criteria | Exclusion criteria |
|---|---|
| The study involving autoimmune patients aged 18-64 years | Studies investigating Quality of Life, Life Satisfaction, and General Health Well-Being |
| The study investigating flourishing, well-being, or happiness within positive psychology framework | |
| Published or translated into English | |
| Published from January 2018 onward |
Data will be extracted from papers included in the scoping review by two independent reviewers using a modified JBI data extraction tool developed for this scoping review. The extracted data will include specific details about the population (e.g., age, diagnosis, type of autoimmune disease), methodology, models and concepts of flourishing, and key findings related to the object of review and inquiry. The draft of data extraction tool was modified and revised throughout the extraction process. Discrepancies between the reviewers will be resolved through discussion to achieve consensus or by a third-party review.
The scoping review results will be reported through a narrative synthesis, flow diagrams (using PRISMA), and descriptive tables. These report will reflect and summarize the study characteristics, conceptual frameworks, identified gaps, and implication for research and practice in autoimmune care context.
This protocol provides a systematic approach to conduct a scoping review of flourishing framework among individual with autoimmune context within five stages. It outlines obvious inclusion criteria, a transparent methodology, and a rationale for the scoping review scope. The limitations include the specific age range being studied and involving studies reported or translated in English only, thus may limits the scope of the subject being studied.
No dataset was generated or analyzed during the preparation of this protocol.
This work was supported by the Indonesia Endowment Fund for Education (Lembaga Pengelola Dana Pendidikan/LPDP), Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Indonesia. The authors gratefully acknowledge this funding support, which enabled the publication of this journal article.
We sincerely thank the Faculty of Psychology, Airangga University, for supporting this study, Dr. Rahkman Ardi for methodological consultation, and Ms. Salsabila R. K. Syaharani and Mr. M. Rizal for their assistance in developing this protocol.