Resources of adaptation for daily living.

Occupational therapy addresses the chronically disabled person's adaptation to problems in daily living. Resources of adaptation are those inherent abilities and lifelong learnings which the individual uses to deal with daily living problems. Adaptation is described as flexible behavior to meet the changing needs of a changing environment. A review of the literature from a bio-social frame of reference identifies resources of adaptation. These resources are classified into a conceptual framework of three hierarchical levels corresponding to three time spans of adaptation: evolution, ontogenesis, and immediate learning. The classification of the resources of adaptation has implications for therapeutic evaluation and treatment, including the discovery and assessment of the resources of adaptation, a strategy for resource reorganization, and the environmental management of limited resources by the policy of "mini-max."