This study reports perceived needs, morale and strategies for coping with stress for 68 caregivers of persons with Alzheimer's disease living in relatively isolated communities in Northwestern Ontario, Canada. Participants express needs for educational and social support, experience significant difficulties with morale, and employ coping strategies which reflect an inadequate social support system. Some implications for social policy are described.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
1. Alzheimer's Association of Ontario (1984). Challenges and solutions. Toronto.
2.
2. Heckler MNH: (1985). The fight against Alzheimer's disease. American Psychologist. 40, 1140-1144.
3.
3. Fenglert AP & Goodrich N: (1979). Wives of elderly disabled men: The hidden patients. The Gerontologist. 19, 175-183.
4.
4. Given CW, Collins CE & Given BA: (1988). Sources of stress among families caring for relatives with Alzheimer's disease. Nursing Clinics of North America. 23, 253-259.
5.
5. Cole L, Griffin K & Ruiz B: (1986). A comprehensive approach to working with families of Alzheimer's patients. Journal of Gerontological Social Work. 2, 27-39.
6.
6. Lawton MP, Brody EL, Saperstein A: (1989). A controlled study of respite services for caregivers of Alzheimer's patients. Gerontologist. 29, 8-16.
7.
7. Price HJ & Levy KA: (1990). Variables influencing burden in spousal and adult child primary caregivers of persons with Alzheimer's disease in the home setting. American Journal of Alzheimer's Care and Related Disorders Research. January/February, 34-41.
8.
8. Scharlach A: (1989). A comparison of employed caregivers of cognitively impaired, and physically impaired elderly persons. Research on Aging. 11, 225-243.
9.
9. Baillie V, Borbeck JS & Barnes L: (1988). Stress, social support and psychological distress of family caregivers of the elderly. Nursing Research. 37, 217-222.
10.
10. Kiecolt-Glaser J, Dyer G, & Shuttleworth E: (1988). Upsetting social interactions and distress among Alzheimer's disease family caregivers: A replication and extension. American Journal of Community Psychology. 16, 825-837.
11.
11. Ontario Ministry of Community and Social Services (I 985). Alzheimer's disease. Toronto: Queen's Printer.
12.
12. Roybal CR: (1988). Mental health and aging. American Psychologist. 43, 189-194.
13.
13. Pierce L, Ader K, & Peter P: (1989). Caregiver burden and coping strategies. American Journal of Alzheimer's Care and Related Disorders and Research. September/October, 36-41.
14.
14. Pratt C, Wright S & Schmall V: (1987). Burden, coping and health status: A comparison of family caregivers to community-dwelling and institutionalized Alzheimer's patients. Jounal of Gervntological Social Work. 19,99-112.
15.
15. Quayhagen MP & Quayhagen M: (1988). Alzheimer's stress: Coping with the care giving role. Gerontologist. 28, 391-396.
16.
16. Birkel R & Jones C: (1989). A comparison of the care giving networks of dependent elderly individuals who are lucid and those who are demented. The Gerontologist. 29, 114-119.
17.
17. Novak M & Guest C: (1989). Caregiver response to Alzheimer's disease. International Journal of Aging and Human Development. 28, 67-79.
18.
18. Zarit SH, Reever KE & Bach-Peterson J: (1980). Relatives of the impaired elderly: Correlates of feeling burden. Gerontologist. 20,649-655.
19.
19. Chiriboga D, Weiler P & Neilsen K: (I 988). The stress of caregivers. Journal of Applied Social Sciences. 13, 119-141.
20.
20. Motenko A: (1989). The frustrations, gratifications, and well-being of dementia caregivers. Gerontologist. 29, 166-172.
21.
21. Holahan CK & Holahan CJ: (1987), Self-efficacy, social support, and depression in aging: A longitudinal analysis. Journal of Gerontology. 42, 65-68.
22.
22. Stetz K: (1989). The relationship among background characteristics, purpose in life, and care giving demands on perceived health of spouse caregivers. Scholarly Inquiry for Nursing Practice. 3, 133-153.
23.
23. Gwyther LP & George LK: (1986). Caregivers for dementia patients; Complex determinants of well-being and burden. Introduction, Gerontologist. 26, 245-247.
24.
24. Loos C & Bowd A: (I 990). Alzheimer's disease and associated cognitive impairments: A family affair Report to the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. Thunder Bay: Lake head University.
25.
25. Dieckmann MA, Zarit SH, Zarit JM, & Gatz M: (1988). The Alzheimer's disease knowledge test. The Gerontologist. 28, 402-407.
26.
26. Simonton LI: (1987). Assessing caregiver information needs: A brief questionnaire. Journal of Gerontological Social Work. 10, 177-180.
27.
27. Lawton MP: (1971). The functional assessment of elderly people. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society. 19, 475-481.
28.
28. Zarit SH: (1982). Families, informal supports and Alzheimer's disease. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of Southern California, Davis.
29.
29. McCubbin H, Olson D & Larsen A: (I1981) Family crisis oriented personal evaluation scales (F-SCOPES). St. Paul, Minnesota: Family Social Science, University of Minnesota.
30.
30. Goodman CC & Pynoos J: (1988). Telephone networks connect care giving families of Alzheimer's victims. The Gerontologist. 28, 602-605.
