|
KMID : 0928320070070040253
|
|
Korean Journal of Health Promotion and Disease Prevention
2007 Volume.7 No. 4 p.253 ~ p.260
|
|
|
Caregivers’ Burdens with Demented Family Member, Stress Responses, and their Physical Health
|
|
Oh Eun-Sub
Suh Kyung-Hyun
|
|
|
Abstract
|
|
|
Background: This study aims to investigate the relations of sub-variables of family caregivers’ burdens or stresses with demented patients to stress responses, physical symptoms, and perceived health, in order to suggest useful information for health practitioners who help them.
Methods: Participants were 166 family caregivers of demented patients who were using imbecility shelter center in Seoul, whose mean age was 52.84 (SD=12.98) and 71.7% of them were females. Participants completed questionnaires and psychological tests including: Questionnaire on Resources and Stress for family caregivers of demented adults, Stress Response Inventory, Han & Jang’s Perceived Health Questionnaire, and Chon’s Physical Symptom Questionnaire. Researches examined the differences on caregivers’ burdens or stresses by kinds of family relations and periods of prevalence of the disease with ANOVA, the relations of caregivers’ stress to stress responses, physical symptoms, and perceived health with Pearson’s Product-Moment.
Results: Spouse caregivers felt more stresses than other family member caregivers for demented patients, and caregivers with patients who have had the disease for 2 to 5 years were less experienced stresses than caregivers with patients who have had the disease for more than 5 years. Caregivers’ emotional stresses had significant positive relationships with tension, aggression, somatization, anger, depression, fatigue, and frustration. And caregivers’ feeling of responsibility to demented patients had significant positive relationships with most of stress responses except aggression. Caregivers’ stresses were able to account for almost 34% of variances of somatization responses. And, caregivers’ emotional stresses and feeling of responsibility had significant positive relationships with headaches, insomnia, digestive symptoms, and cardiac symptoms, and negative relationships with perceived health, while vigilance showed a positive relationship with perceived health.
Conclusions: Although this study is cross-sectional correlational study, researchers found that the relationships between family caregivers’ stress with demented patients and negative stress responses or negative effects on physical health.
|
|
|
KEYWORD
|
|
|
dementia, caregiver, stress, physical health
|
|
|
FullTexts / Linksout information
|
|
|
|
|
|
Listed journal information
|
|
|
|