Department of Psychology,Sapienza University of Rome,Via dei Marsi,78,00185,Rome,Italy.
Department of Social and Developmental,Sapienza University of Rome,Via dei Marsi,78,00185,Rome,Italy.
Int Psychogeriatr. 2017 Jul;29(7):1095-1103. doi: 10.1017/S1041610217000059. Epub 2017 Feb 6.
Caregiving for a relative with dementia has been associated with negative consequences for mental health. Self-efficacy has been shown to correlate negatively with depression but the long-term association between caregiver burden, caregiver self-efficacy, and depressive symptoms, remains still largely unexplored. The aim of the present study was to evaluate whether different self-efficacy domains partially mediated the relationship between caregiving burden and depression.
A three-wave design was used, with initial assessment and follow-ups three months later and one year later. One hundred seventy caregivers of patients with AD responded to measures of caregiver burden, caregiving self-efficacy, and depressive symptoms. Data were analyzed by means of structural equation models.
The tested model provided support for the guiding hypothesis. Burden at the time of the first assessment (T1) significantly influenced depression one year later and the relationship between burden at time one and depressive symptoms one year later was partially mediated by self-efficacy for controlling upsetting thoughts.
The findings of the present study provide evidence that, along a considerable length of time, the effects of caregiver burden on depressive symptoms can be explained by the caregivers' efficacy beliefs in controlling upsetting thoughts related to the caregiving tasks. Interventions for caregivers of patients with AD may help them in tackling negative thoughts about the caregiving role.
照顾痴呆症患者的亲属与心理健康的负面后果有关。自我效能感与抑郁呈负相关，但长期以来，照顾者负担、照顾者自我效能感和抑郁症状之间的关联仍在很大程度上未得到探索。本研究的目的是评估不同的自我效能领域是否部分中介了照顾负担与抑郁之间的关系。
采用三波设计，初始评估和 3 个月后及 1 年后的随访。170 名 AD 患者的照顾者对照顾者负担、照顾自我效能和抑郁症状进行了测量。通过结构方程模型对数据进行分析。
所测试的模型为指导假设提供了支持。第一次评估（T1）时的负担显著影响一年后的抑郁，第一次评估时的负担与一年后抑郁症状之间的关系部分由控制令人不安的想法的自我效能来介导。
本研究的结果表明，在相当长的一段时间内，照顾者负担对抑郁症状的影响可以用照顾者对与照顾任务相关的令人不安的想法的控制能力的效能信念来解释。对 AD 患者的照顾者的干预可以帮助他们应对对照顾角色的负面想法。
