Psychology Research and Behavior Management (Feb 2024)
Emotional Coping Strategies for Informal Caregivers of Hospitalized Patients: A Study of Distress and Overload
Abstract
Daniel Alfonso Oleas Rodríguez,1,* Christian Yong Peña,1,* Xochitl Garza Olivares,2,* Fernando Silva Teixeira Filho,3,* Jonathan Enrique Lucero Córdova,4,* Andy Jesús Salas Naranjo1,* 1Departament of Psychology, Ecotec University, Samborondón, Guayas, Ecuador; 2Department of Clinical and Health Psychology, Tecnológico de Monterrey, Monterrey, NL, México; 3Department of Clinical Psychology, Universidade Estadual Paulista, Assis, SP, Brasil; 4Department of Psychology, Universidad Casa Grande, Guayaquil, Guayas, Ecuador*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Daniel Alfonso Oleas Rodríguez, Ecotec University, 13.5 Km vía Samborondón, Samborondón, Guayas, EC092301, Ecuador, Tel +593 992968620, Email [email protected]: Informal caregivers constitute a vulnerable population group that has forsaken their activities and life projects with the sole purpose of caring for a dependent individual without receiving any form of compensation in return. Emotionally, this population has been neglected by both the state and family members, exacerbating distress levels among them. The objective is to analyze the impact of emotional coping strategies on the experiences of distress and emotional burden among adult informal caregivers tending to hospitalized individuals.Sample and Methods: The role of emotional coping strategies in caregiver burden and psychological distress was examined in 460 informal adult caregivers from Guayaquil, Ecuador, who participated in an online survey. The instruments used included the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS 21), the Zarit Burden Inventory (ZBI), and the Emotional Coping Questionnaire (Cuestionario de Afrontamiento Emocional). The analysis involved a multiple regression to iteratively select variables, aiming to build a simpler and more explanatory model.Results: Employing multiple regression analysis with a stepwise model selection procedure, it was found that 16.5% of the variance in depression, 19.5% of the variance in anxiety, 19.8% of the variance in stress, and 32% of the variance in burden were predicted by specific coping strategies. Additionally, the impact of burden was estimated by the participants’ gender, with greater burden observed among males due to societal role expectations.Conclusion: This study underscores the importance of emotional coping in the experience of informal caregivers and suggests that psychological interventions should focus on developing adaptive strategies to manage the stress and emotional burden associated with caregiving.Keywords: anxiety, depression, stress, emotion regulation, emotional overload, cognitive emotion regulation
