Indirect effects of caregiver guilt on depressive symptoms through psychological flexibility processes in family caregivers of people with dementia.

IF 2.8 3区医学 Q3 GERIATRICS & GERONTOLOGY

Aging & Mental Health Pub Date : 2025-03-08 DOI:10.1080/13607863.2025.2475322

Areum Han, Ickpyo Hong

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Objectives: Guilt is a common emotion among family caregivers of individuals with dementia and a significant predictor of depressive symptoms. This study explored the relationships among caregiver guilt, key psychological flexibility processes (cognitive fusion, experiential avoidance, and values-driven action), and depressive symptoms in these caregivers.

Methods: A cross-sectional study design was employed, with data collected from 191 family caregivers of individuals with dementia in the United States. Structural equation modeling was used to analyze the data.

Results: The model demonstrated excellent fit. Caregiver guilt directly explained 50.4% of its effect on depressive symptoms, with indirect effects accounting for 49.6%. The largest indirect effect was through values-driven action alone (11.5%), followed by experiential avoidance alone (10.3%), cognitive fusion → experiential avoidance (7.6%), and cognitive fusion → experiential avoidance → values-driven action (6.1%).

Conclusion: The findings highlight the significant partial mediating roles of key psychological flexibility processes in the relationship between caregiver guilt and depressive symptoms. Interventions targeting these processes in the context of guilt-related thoughts may help healthcare providers support caregivers by reducing the negative impact of caregiver guilt on depressive symptoms.

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通过痴呆症患者家庭照护者的心理弹性过程，照护者内疚感对抑郁症状的间接影响。

目的：内疚是痴呆症患者家庭照顾者的一种常见情绪，也是抑郁症状的重要预测因子。本研究探讨照顾者内疚感、关键心理弹性过程（认知融合、经验回避和价值观驱动行为）与照顾者抑郁症状之间的关系。方法：采用横断面研究设计，收集美国191名痴呆症患者的家庭照顾者的数据。采用结构方程模型对数据进行分析。结果：模型拟合良好。照顾者内疚感直接解释了其对抑郁症状影响的50.4%，间接影响占49.6%。间接影响最大的是价值观驱动行为（11.5%），其次是经验回避（10.3%）、认知融合→经验回避（7.6%）和认知融合→经验回避→价值观驱动行为（6.1%）。结论：关键心理弹性过程在照顾者内疚感与抑郁症状的关系中具有显著的部分中介作用。在内疚相关思想的背景下，针对这些过程的干预可能有助于医疗保健提供者通过减少照顾者内疚对抑郁症状的负面影响来支持照顾者。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Aging & Mental Health 医学-精神病学

CiteScore

7.00

自引率

2.90%

发文量

176

审稿时长

4-8 weeks

期刊介绍： Aging & Mental Health provides a leading international forum for the rapidly expanding field which investigates the relationship between the aging process and mental health. The journal addresses the mental changes associated with normal and abnormal or pathological aging, as well as the psychological and psychiatric problems of the aging population. The journal also has a strong commitment to interdisciplinary and innovative approaches that explore new topics and methods. Aging & Mental Health covers the biological, psychological and social aspects of aging as they relate to mental health. In particular it encourages an integrated approach for examining various biopsychosocial processes and etiological factors associated with psychological changes in the elderly. It also emphasizes the various strategies, therapies and services which may be directed at improving the mental health of the elderly and their families. In this way the journal promotes a strong alliance among the theoretical, experimental and applied sciences across a range of issues affecting mental health and aging. The emphasis of the journal is on rigorous quantitative, and qualitative, research and, high quality innovative studies on emerging topics.