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We appraised life satisfaction using the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS), and analysed its psychometric properties in persons with intellectual disability (ID). Ninety-nine persons with ID from four services in Spain participated. A battery of subjective assessments was used, including the SWLS, a Quality of Life measure (WHOQOL-BREF), and health status and sociodemographic information. Psychometric properties of the SWLS were investigated using standard psychometric methods. Overall, our results showed that persons with ID were satisfied with their life (SWLS score 25–29). Internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha) was .79. A factor analysis using principal components method, showed a one factor structure accounting for 55.7% of the variance. Associations, using Spearman's rho correlation coefficients, were confirmed between SWLS with the overall QoL, satisfaction with health and WHOQOL-BREF total score. Regarding ‘known group’ differences, persons living in residential institutions had lower life satisfaction compared to persons living in community facilities or living at home, though differences were not statistically significant. Student t-tests showed that SWLS scores significantly discriminated between healthy and unhealthy; and those reporting higher satisfaction with their relationships, home environment and their jobs compared to participants with lower satisfaction levels. To our best knowledge, this study is the first to report on the psychometrics properties of the SWLS in persons with ID, both in Spain and internationally. It might be a promising tool to use, with other outcome measures, in appraising persons with ID in different services and types of care; also, it might guide policymakers on the implementation of policies for persons with ID.

Subjective well-being and Quality of Life (QoL) are increasingly recognized and used as outcome measures for interventions and service delivery evaluations in persons with disabilities. Currently, the opinion of the person with a disability is considered to be a key variable in identifying their support needs and assessing the value of the support they receive (McGillivray, Lau, Cummins, & Davey, 2009). In general and often, subjective well-being has been used as QoL, but both terms are not synonymous. The World Health Organization Quality of Life (WHOQOL) Group defined QoL as individuals’ perception of their position in life in the context of the culture and value systems in which they live and in relation to their goals, expectations, standards and concerns. It is a broad ranging concept, incorporating in a complex way individuals’ physical health, psychological state, level of independence, social relationships, personal beliefs and their relationships to salient features of the environment ( The WHOQOL Group, 1995). This definition highlights the view that QoL is subjective, includes both positive and negative facets of life and is multi-dimensional. As such, this definition can also be applied to persons with mild-to-moderate intellectual disability (ID). Subjective well-being has two components, the individual's expressions of positive or negative emotions or mood (happiness) and the individual's general satisfaction with several aspects of his/her life (satisfaction) ( Diener & Suh, 1997). Supportive family and friends, work, satisfaction with the self, religious or spiritual life, learning and growth, leisure and health are components that go into most people's experience of satisfaction ( Diener, Suh, Lucas, & Smith, 1999). At present, the DMS-5 and ICD-11 use the term Intellectual Development Disorder (IDD) (Salvador-Carulla et al., 2011) to refer to learning disability, mental retardation and developmental disability, terms commonly used until recently. Persons with ID report poorer health status than persons without ID (Havercamp et al., 2004, Martínez-Leal et al., 2011 and van Schrojenstein Lantman-de Valk and Walsh, 2008) and greater difficulty accessing primary and specialized health care services than the general population (Alborz, McNally, & Glendinning, 2005). Often, the needs of persons with ID are unrecognized and unmet (Cooper et al., 2004 and WHO, 2007). Supported employment and social participation, has been shown to affect positively the life of persons with ID (Cramm et al., 2009 and Emerson and Hatton, 2008). Living accommodation has also been shown to be associated with better outcomes in persons with ID (Kozma et al., 2009, Mansell and Beadle-Brown, 2010 and Stancliffe et al., 2009). Spain is one of the European countries with a varying pattern of institutional care, including people in large residential institutions. While QoL has received more attention in persons with ID, less attention has been paid to their subjective well-being and specifically to the life satisfaction component (Lin, Lin, & Wu, 2010). For example, Schwartz and Rabinovitz (2003) appraised life satisfaction in persons with ID living in community residences using the Lifestyle Satisfaction Scale (Heal & Chadsey-Rusch, 1986); they reported lower level of life satisfaction in persons with ID compared with proxy information (parents and staff). A study using the Personal Wellbeing Index Intellectual Disability Scale showed that subjective well-being levels in persons with ID were within the normative range, and were similar to those reported by the general population (McGillivray et al., 2009). Emerson and Hatton (2008) investigated the association between five indicators of subjective well-being and the personal characteristics, socioeconomic position, and social connectedness of a sample of 1273 English adults with ID. They asked five questions, first, “How do you feel about your life at the moment?, followed by four questions from the Millennium Poverty and Social Exclusion Survey (Pantazis, Gordon, & Levitas, 2006): Do you ever feel sad or worried?” left out of things?, helpless?, and confident? The authors found only slightly lower subjective well-being than typically reported among the general population. Variation in subjective well-being was strongly and consistently related to socio economic disadvantage and social relationships (Emerson & Hatton, 2008). Stancliffe et al. (2009) appraised self-reported well-being and satisfaction in persons with ID and found benefits of residential support provided in very small settings, with choice of where and with whom to live and to individuals living with family. One of the most widely scales used to assess life satisfaction is the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS) (Diener, Emmons, Larson, & Griffin, 1985). The psychometric properties of the SWLS have been examined in different populations, clinical and nonclinical samples; the scale is reliable, has a high internal consistency and is capable of discriminating groups of presumed different subjective well-being levels (Pavot and Diener, 2008 and Vassar, 2008). In Spain, the psychometric properties of SWLS have been studied in adolescents and nonclinical samples (Atienza et al., 2003 and Pons et al., 2000). To our best knowledge, the SWLS has not been used in persons with ID. This study aimed to examine the psychometric properties of the SWLS in a sample of Spanish persons with ID. We expected to find good reliability and validity of the scale.