An investigation into the relationship between burden, satisfaction and coping styles in informal caregivers of people with dementia

Informal caregiving is demanding and stressful but, can also be highly
satisfying. Much of the research has focused on the negative impact at the
expense of investigating the complex relationship between caregiver
satisfaction and burden. The aim of the study was to investigate if coping
strategies identified by the existing literature as less or more helpful were
associated with burden and satisfaction and if the dependency of the carerecipient
influenced the caregivers' levels of burden and satisfaction.
Participants were 67 informal caregivers of people with dementia dwelling
in the community. Standardised measures were used to measure caregiver
burden, satisfaction and distress, the functional dependency of the carerecipient
and the frequency of memory, behavioural and affective
symptoms associated with the disease.
The findings showed that burden and satisfaction were inversely related.
Multiple regression analysis showed the perception of having lost control of
one's life as a result of the care-recipient's illness accounted for most of the
variance in burden. Feelings of closeness and enjoyment derived from time
spent with the care-recipient accounted for most of the variance in
satisfaction. The use of venting as a coping strategy accounted for most of
the variance in burden. Satisfaction was related to the care-recipient's
functional ability, but burden was not.
The conclusions are discussed in light of existing literature on the
relationship between satisfaction, burden and the role of processes in the
selection of coping strategies and appraisal of the caregiving role. Drawing
from other areas of psychology to further understand the complex
relationship between burden and satisfaction is suggested. The
implications with regard to clinical practice, such as staff training and further
research, such as a retrospective qualitative study to investigate the changing relationship between burden and satisfaction during the course of
caregiving are explored.

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