van Knippenberg Rosalia J M, de Vugt Marjolein E, Ponds Rudolf W, Myin-Germeys Inez, Verhey Frans R J
Department of Psychiatry and Neuropsychology and Alzheimer Center Limburg, School for Mental Health and Neurosciences, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands.
Department of Psychiatry and Neuropsychology and Alzheimer Center Limburg, School for Mental Health and Neurosciences, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands.
Am J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2017 Aug;25(8):852-859. doi: 10.1016/j.jagp.2016.10.015. Epub 2016 Nov 11.
Positive emotions and feelings of competence seem to play an important role in the well-being of caregivers of people with dementia. Both are likely to fluctuate constantly throughout the caretaking process. Unlike standard retrospective methods, momentary assessments in daily life can provide insight into these moment-to-moment fluctuations. Therefore, in this study both retrospective and momentary assessments were used to examine the relationship between caregivers' sense of competence and their experienced positive affect (PA) in daily life.
Thirty Dutch caregivers provided momentary data on PA and daily sense of competence ratings for 6 consecutive days using the experience sampling methodology. Additionally, they reported retrospectively on their sense of competence with a traditional questionnaire.
A positive association was found between retrospective and daily measured sense of competence. Caregivers reported corresponding levels of sense of competence on both measures. Both daily and retrospective sense of competence were positively associated with the experienced levels of PA. However, daily sense of competence appeared to be the strongest predictor. Regarding the variability in PA, only daily sense of competence showed a significant association, with a higher daily sense of competence predicting a more stable PA pattern.
This study provides support for redirecting caregiver support interventions toward enhancement of positive rather than negative experiences and focusing more on caregivers' momentary emotional experiences. Momentary assessments are a valuable addition to standard retrospective measures and provide a more comprehensive and dynamic view of caregiver functioning.
积极情绪和胜任感似乎在痴呆症患者照料者的幸福感中发挥着重要作用。在整个照料过程中，这两者都可能不断波动。与标准的回顾性方法不同，日常生活中的即时评估能够洞察这些瞬间波动。因此，在本研究中，回顾性评估和即时评估均被用于检验照料者的胜任感与他们在日常生活中体验到的积极情感（PA）之间的关系。
30名荷兰照料者使用经验抽样法连续6天提供了关于积极情感和日常胜任感评分的即时数据。此外，他们用传统问卷对自己的胜任感进行了回顾性报告。
回顾性测量的胜任感与每日测量的胜任感之间存在正相关。照料者在这两种测量方式上报告的胜任感水平相当。每日和回顾性的胜任感均与所体验到的积极情感水平呈正相关。然而，每日胜任感似乎是最强的预测因素。关于积极情感的变异性，只有每日胜任感显示出显著关联，较高的每日胜任感预示着更稳定的积极情感模式。
本研究为将照料者支持干预转向增强积极而非消极体验，并更多地关注照料者的即时情感体验提供了支持。即时评估是对标准回顾性测量的宝贵补充，能提供关于照料者功能的更全面、动态的视角。
