Contributors to and mediators of psychological well-being for informal caregivers

Abstract

This article explores the relationships between caregiving stressors and caregiver well-being in a representative community sample of disabled elders and their informal caregivers. The direct and indirect effects of stressors and potential mediators on the outcome of caregiver psychological well- being, as measured by depression, were examined using path analysis. Potential mediators of the primary stressors on depression included mastery, emotional support, quality of relationship between the caregiver and the care recipient, formal service use and role overload. Findings indicate that the caregiving stressors (needs for care) led to caregiver depression indirectly through their effect on hours of care provided and the resulting caregiver perception of role overload. Quality of the caregiver/care recipient relationship mediated the relationship of the caregiving stressors and caregiver overload and depression. Finally, regardless of the level of primary stressors, caregivers with high levels of mastery or emotional support were at lower risk of depression. These findings can be used to inform the design of proactive caregiver interventions.