• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.585-595
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• 1999

The purpose of this study was to examine the predictors of burnout among informal caregivers of older adults. One hundred thirty seven caregivers who had provided care to older adults over 60 years of age for more than one month were included in the study. Most of the caregivers were white (91%) and female (78%). Mean ages of the caregivers were 64 years and 78% of them were married. Seventy percent of the older adults suffered from Alzheimer and related disease. In this study, caregivers reported that they experienced burnout once a month. The scores of emotional exhaustion and reduced personal accomplishment of the caregivers were in the moderate burnout range. To examine the predictors of burnout, discriminant analysis was used. Caregivers were divided by two groups based on the sum of scores (cutpoint＝6) on three dimensions of burnout after each dimension was categorized into high(3), moderate(2), and low(1). Nine predictors were included in the analysis : Caregiver's age, employment status, Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADL) of the older adult, presence of dementia of the older adult, caregiver's empathy toward the older adult (emotional and cognitive), and 3 coping strategies (negative, problem-focused, cognitive reconstructioning). Caregivers who reported high burnout showed higher cognitive empathy toward the older adults than those who showed low burnout. Caregivers who experienced high burnout used negative coping more often, and cognitive reconstructioning coping and problem focused coping less often than their counterparts. Wilks' Lambda was .78 indicating that differences between the two groups were significant. Cognitive empathy and cognitive reconstructioning coping showed high standardized canonical discriminat function coefficients over .40. Discriminant function with 9 predictors correctly classified 71% of the sample. In conclusion, informal caregivers also experienced certain level of burnout. Cognitive empathy and coping strategies predicted burnout experience of the caregivers. Based on this study, nursing intervention to the informal caregivers to improve their cognitive empathy toward the older adults and to modify their coping strategies in a way to reduce burnout experience can be applied. Further research to develop effective nursing interventions for the purpose of reducing burnout experience by modifying predictors was suggested.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.893-904
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• 2000

The sample of this study consisted of 140 informal caregivers who provided care to the older adults(over 60 years of age) in Great Cleveland, USA. Self-rated questionnaires were utilized to collect information. The purpose of the study was to identify coping strategies most frequently utilized by informal caregivers of older adults and to examine predictors of the caregivers' health responses to the caregiving situation applying Lazarus and Folkman stress model(1984). Stepwise multiple regression was used to identify significant predictors among caregivers' demographic-socio-economic factors, older adult's dependency of activities of daily living(ADLs), caregiver's appraisal to the caregiving situation, and coping strategies. Informal caregivers (N=140) included in the study utilized help-seeking and problem-solving coping strategies more than self-blame and minimization of threat coping strategies. Caregivers' responses to the caregiving situation were observed by caregivers' perceived physical health, depression and life satisfaction. For perceived physical health, threat appraisal, older adult's dependency on ADLs, existential growth coping strategy, and monthly income accounted for 25% of the variance. Caregivers who appraised the caregiving situation as more threatening, reported higher dependency on ADLs, used more existential growth coping strategy, and had higher monthly income reported better physical health. For depression, threat appraisal, stress appraisal, existential growth coping strategy, self-blame coping strategy, and monthly income accounted for 48% of the variance. Caregivers who used more existential growth coping and less self-blame coping, appraised the situation as less threatening, less stressful, and had higher monthly income reported less depression. For life satisfaction, self-blame coping, existential growth coping, monthly income, stress appraisal accounted for 49% of the variance. Caregivers who used more existential growth coping, less self-blame coping, less stress appraisal, lower monthly income reported better life satisfaction. In conclusion, informal caregivers in this study utilized positive coping strategies such as problem-focused, existential growth, help-seeking, rather than negative coping strategies including self-blame. When they utilized positive coping strategies more often, caregivers experienced higher perceived physical health, higher life satisfaction and lower depression. Therefore, nursing intervention which utilized positive coping strategies is needed to enhance informal caregivers to have positive health responses to the caregiving demands.

• Perspectives in Nursing Science
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.47-60
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• 2006

BACKGROUND: Social, legal, and economic factors have changed the delivery of care to elderly who are frail and/or chronically ill. Increasing number of the elderly are now treated in the community, while living with or in close proximity to their family. It is evident that families play a major role of support for elderly persons in our society. This paper provides a review and analysis of studies that have investigated informal caregiving issues encompassing physical, psychological, emotional, and social domains. RESULTS OF THE REVIEW: Family caregiving often interfered with workplace and other responsibilities, creating physical, emotional, and financial stress for caregivers. Relatively high volumes of research addressed caregiving issues in the families of Alzheimer patients and in the areas of emotional and psychological impact of caregiving. Few studies explicitly investigated the role of informal caregivers in the management of other chronic conditions such as stroke or depression or physical consequences of long-term caregiving. While most studies were focused on negative aspects of caregiving, a few studies found it rewarding. Often the burden, stress, and socio-economic effects on the family caregiving for an elderly person were not sufficiently appreciated. CONCLUSIONS: Positive outcomes for both the caregiver and the care recipient are more likely to occur when effective levels of collaboration exist between health professionals and caregivers. As a first step, a better understanding of the caregiving experience such as caregiver characteristics, care recipient characteristics, and social stigma is important for nurses to minimize the burden of care so that appropriate interventions can be developed. In addition, further studies are needed to examine the role and needs of informal caregivers in the care of increasing number of frail and/or chronic ill elderly treated in the community.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.54
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• pp.203-220
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• 2003

The purpose of this study is to identify and empirically study the factors that significantly influence amount and types of Informal caregiving to severely disabled elderly who have functional limitations. For this research, a set of caregivers living with the severely elderly were surveyed. Among collected data, data for 211 caregivers were used for this study. The results suggest that a variety of factors determine informal caregivers do systematically determine their allocation of time to the provision of elderly care. The results of four OLS regressions using data surveyed are as follows. First, The hypothesized role of income is supported in model 1 of the four regression models. Second, the technological components of informal care production significantly influences caregiving hours include the number of ADLs and IADLS needs help, the number of caregivers in the team, the utilization of formal services. Third, any component of production technology of household goods do not significantly influence caregiving hours. Fourth, the components of preferences significantly influence caregiving hours include caregiver's participation in market work, willingness money to pay market-purchased care for the elderly.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.46
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• pp.319-348
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• 2001

The primary purpose of this study is to examine the buffering effect of social welfare services on the relationship between the level of older persons' impairment and burden experienced by the family caregivers. It also assessed the level of caregiving burden as well as the effect of both older person's impairment and the characteristics of the caregivers on burden. The survey data collected from 150 community residing family caregivers was used for analyses. Findings are as follows. First, the caregivers are more burdened in the deterioration of mental health, scarce time for oneself, and the suffering of social life than in other areas of burden. Second, the more severe the physical and the mental impairment of the elder, the more burden the caregivers experience. The caregivers' characteristics such as the worse mental health, the lower level of attachment to the elder, the longer caregiving hours are also related to the higher level of caregiving burden. Third, the caregivers' use of adult day care and respite care services buffer the relationship between the level of impairment of older persons and the caregiving burden. However, social work counselling, visiting nurse, homemaker services do not have such buffering effects. Among informal support, instrumental support buffers the relationship between the elder's physical impairment and burden, while emotional support buffers the relationship between the elder's mental impairment and burden. According to the results, implication for social welfare services and practice methods for the family caregivers was discussed.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
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• v.32 no.5
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• pp.665-672
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• 2002

It was identified that how many homebound bedridden elderlies and their primary caregivers were depressed, and which factors affected the bedridden elderly's depression. Method: The subjects were 191 homebound bedridden elderlies and their primary caregivers. The affecting factors were classified into two categories : bedridden elderly and their primary caregiver related factors. Then bedridden elderly's factors were classified demographic and disease-related factors again. The stepwise regression was used to identify significant factors. Result: The prevalence of bedridden elderly's and caregiver's depression was 77.8% and 67.0%, respectively. And the model explained 33.3% of variance of bedridden elderly's depression. Cognitively-impaired female elderlies who had depressed caregivers were found to be more depressed. And caregivers who perceived burden were identified to be more depressed. Conclusion: It is recommended that the health professionals need to identify bedridden elderlies and caregivers at risk of depression. Especially elderlies who is in poor cognition, those who are female, and those whose caregivers were depressed might be considered carefully in all counseling or follow-up. Also the primary caregivers must be helped to access already available formal and informal support.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.71-84
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• 2014

Background: Informal care is increasingly recognized as placing a significant burden on the lives of family caregivers. The purpose of this study is to investigate factors related to family caregivers' burden with the community-dwelling disabled elderly under the long-term care insurance system, using the Stress Process Model developed by Pearlin (1990). Methods: Total 1,233 family caregivers with the disabled elderly, using the long-term care services in their home from May to June 2009, completed questionnaires finally. The questionnaire of this study consists of a total of 32 questions, including 11 questions related to background and context, 17 questions related to objective stressors, and 4 questions related to coping resourses. Family caregivers' burden is measured by the Korean Revised Caregiving Appraisal Scale (K-RCAS, Cronbach's alpha=0.86). To investigate factors related to family caregivers' burden, multiple regression analysis was conducted. Results: The average score of caregivers' burden was 22.0 (${\pm}6.12$). In multiple regression analysis, there were statistically significant factors affecting on the family caregivers' burden, that are related to background and context (region, living status, education level, relationship with beneficiary), objective stressors (duration of caregiving), coping resourses (caregiver's health status). Conclusion: This study found that family caregivers experience a considerable burden. The findings suggest that policies must be taken to relieve family caregivers of their duties temporarily, and to support them with counselling and education.

• Journal of Families and Better Life
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.65-73
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• 2002

The purpose of this study was to describe 1) the prevalence of caregiving among adult men and women in Korea and 2) the characteristics of caregiving context. The main results were as follows: 1) About 1 in 6 adults reported that they provided care for the relatives and friends during the previous year. 2) The proportion of male to female caregivers was similar, indicating a higher prevalence of male involvement than previous studies indicated. Yet, the relationships to care recipients and types of care were found to be different by gender of caregiver 3) Adult caregivers are most likely to provide care for the elderly, but continue to provide care for younger persons as well. 4) A nontrivial proportion of the respondents reported providing care for more than one person, suggesting the need to pay special attention to these multiple caregivers.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.67 no.4
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• pp.279-299
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• 2015

This study examines the impact of Long-Term Care Insurance(LTCI) on family caregivers(especially focused on female household members) labor supply in South Korea. When public care and informal care are substitutes, LTCI will change allocation of time of family caregivers to spend more time to paid work. The impact of LTCI on labor supply depends on each country's institutional level of public care services. If public care can not substitute for informal care, labor supply of family caregivers will not rise significantly. The conclusions of vigorous empirical study from western countries' are incompatible and problem of endogeneity in terms of methodology has been raised consistently. The dataset of this study are used the third and ninth waves of Korea Welfare Panel. As a result, the introduction of LTCI had no effect on labor supply of household members. Robust findings suggest the positive effects of caregiving on labor market outcomes in simple comparison t-test, but not in fixed-effect regression. Compared with western countries, South Korea's public care services can be interpreted as a supplement to only part that remained at the level does not substitute informal care. These findings may suggest that if LTCI become much more prevalent in the future, senior citizens and family members will be able to choose the LTCI arrangement that best suits their needs.

• The Korean Nurse
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.69-84
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• 1995

The purpose of this study was to identify caregivers of the elderly, the pattern of the caregivers' caring behaviors, and the cultural principles of patterns of caring behaviors practiced in a Korean minority community, Yanbian. To clarify these, an ethnographic approach was used. The fieldwork for this study was conducted from Aug. 24, 1993 to May 20, 1994. The informants were 16 natives, age 60 or more, who were members of a large family of three generations. The results of the study are as follows. The caregivers for the elderly were family, kinship and community groups. Family caregivers for the elderly were spouses, sons, daughters-in-law, grandchildren, sons of former wives, sons of former husbands, adopted sons. daughters and sons-in-law. The elderly had caregivers who were part of the kinship group. Three community groups provided care for the elderly. The three community groups were Dokbozo. a formal large organization for the elderly. the same age group as an informal small meeting for the elderly, and other community younger groups. The findings of this study indicated that family caregivers, especially spouses and sons, are the significant others of the elderly, and comminuty groups are better caring groups than kinship relatives. This study identified forty-three different kind of caring behaviors. They were divided into fifteen behavior patterns. These patterns integrated into five categories : soo-bal(¼?¹ß), protecting, respect, support, jung(?×). For physical comfort, soo-bal and protecting were conducted. For the comfort of mind, respect. support, and jung were conducted. The comfort of mind are better than physical comfort for the elderly. Cultural principles of caring behaviors were group membership, reciprocity, and harmony. But there was no hierarchy priciple. And these three principles provide best caring together at the same time. This study provides significant data for nursing research, theory and practice.