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Subjective burden, coping, and expressed emotion among family caregivers of the closed head-injured
Abstract
Changes in the personality and emotional and social functioning of closed head injury patients have consistently been related to high levels of distress among family members involved in their care. Caregivers' distress has been found to persist for several years following the injury, and may contribute to anxiety- and depression-related disorders among them. The recent caregiving literature has indicated that this distress may be mediated by specific psychological factors. In this study, the factors which have been the most implicated in caregiving distress were examined among caregivers of closed head injury patients. These factors included caregivers' coping strategies, their attitude towards the patient's disabilities, and their perceived family emotional environment. It was predicted that lower distress would be found among caregivers who reported using problem-focused coping strategies, and who perceived relatively greater cohesion and emotional expressiveness within their families. Distress was predicted to be higher among caregivers reporting the use of more emotionally protective coping strategies and who perceived relatively greater conflict within their families. It was also predicted that distress would be directly related to emotional overinvolvement with and critical attitudes towards the patient. Distress was also predicted to decrease with time following the injury, over the course of several years. All of these predictions were supported in an interview and questionnaire survey of 62 caregivers. Multiple regression analyses showed that the psychological variables together accounted for 61 percent of the variance in distress ratings. Expression of critical and emotionally overinvolved attitudes towards the patient was found to be the single most powerful predictor. Distress was found to decrease significantly with time, but only among caregivers who were ten years or more beyond the injury. It was concluded that the emotional distresses of providing care for a head injured family member can be strongly influenced by the type of coping strategies employed, family emotional environment, and attitude towards the patient and his/her behavioral difficulties.
Subject Area
Psychotherapy
Recommended Citation
Bryan, James Edward, "Subjective burden, coping, and expressed emotion among family caregivers of the closed head-injured" (1990). ETD collection for University of Nebraska-Lincoln. AAI9030109.
https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/dissertations/AAI9030109