Caregiving, Role Overload, and Depression in Family Caregivers
Author Information
Author(s): McDonald Claire, Bravo Adrian
Primary Institution: University of Maryland Baltimore County
Hypothesis
More time spent caregiving and greater ADL dependency would both be associated with more depression symptoms via greater role overload.
Conclusion
The study found that role overload significantly mediates the relationship between caregiving hours, ADL dependency, and depression symptoms among family caregivers of dementia patients.
Supporting Evidence
- Role overload significantly mediated the associations between hours caregiving and depression symptoms in both samples.
- Role overload significantly mediated the associations between ADL dependency and depression symptoms in both samples.
Takeaway
If you take care of someone with dementia for a long time, it can make you feel really stressed and sad, especially if they need a lot of help.
Methodology
Data was analyzed from the National Health and Aging Trends Study and a second sample was collected using Academic Prolific, with mediation models tested using the PROCESS Macro in SPSS.
Limitations
The findings should be investigated in more diverse populations.
Participant Demographics
In the NHATS sample, 70% were female, 63% were white, and the average age was 65; in the Prolific sample, 51% were female, 68% were white, and the average age was 40.
Statistical Information
Confidence Interval
[.07,.18], [.02,.21], [.01,.13], [.02,.20]
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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