Burden and Competence in Caregivers of Alzheimer's Disease Patients.

In relationship to the number of studies on caregiving burden, few studies have assessed the relationship between burden of caregivers and the extent and nature of care given to elderly persons in need of assistance (defined as competence). A study of 96 caregivers of Alzheimer's Disease patients found only a relatively low, and statistically insignificant, relationship between caregiver burden and competence. The development and measurement of competence is described, as is the need to consider both burden and competence as constructs, independent of one another, in work with caregivers of impaired older persons.