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Predictors of subjective burden among familial caregivers of the demented elderly
Abstract
The provision of care to a dependent, elderly individual has consistently been related to high levels of distress among family members involved in their care. If the dependent elder suffers from a dementing illness, the level of distress experienced by the caregiver is even greater. The effects of the caregivers' distress pervade physical, psychological and social areas of function. Recent literature on caregiving indicates that the experience of subjective burden may be mediated by the presence or absence of specific factors. The present study investigated factors which have been inconsistently or preliminarily related to the experience of subjective burden among familial caregivers of the demented elderly. Factors examined included caregivers' coping strategies, attitude towards the elder and his/her disability, severity of the dementing illness, and length of time that the caregiver has provided care. It was predicted that lower subjective burden would be found among caregivers who used problem-focused/positive coping, and whose attitudes towards the demented elder were less critical, hostile and emotionally over-involved in nature. Subjective burden was predicted to be higher among caregivers who reported using more emotion-focused forms of coping, and whose attitudes towards the demented elder were more critical, hostile and emotionally over-involved in nature. It was also predicted that the experience of subjective burden would decrease over time among caregivers using primarily positive or problem-focused coping strategies, that it would demonstrate a weak but positive relation to the severity of the dementing illness as objectively measured, and that it would be more strongly related to the caregivers' perception of the severity. Fifty caregivers and their demented elderly relatives participated in the study. Subjective burden was found to correlate significantly with Expressed Emotion, severity of dementia, blaming others, and wishful thinking, and was inversely correlated with problem-focused coping and counting blessings. Multiple regression indicated that Expressed Emotion, problem-focused coping, time, sex, relationship and severity were important variables in the prediction of burden. Female caregivers were found to experience greater subjective burden than males.
Subject Area
Psychotherapy
Recommended Citation
Tesar, Susan Weeks, "Predictors of subjective burden among familial caregivers of the demented elderly" (1992). ETD collection for University of Nebraska-Lincoln. AAI9233418.
https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/dissertations/AAI9233418