Primary and secondary control strategies and psychological well-being among familial caregivers of older adults with dementia

Caregiving burden, social support, and psychological well-being among family caregivers of older Italians: a cross-sectional study

Objectives

This study aimed to identify factors affecting the psychological well-being of family caregivers of dependent older adults in Italy. Understanding these variables is essential for designing interventions to prevent negative outcomes in at-risk caregivers. The research explored how varying levels of caregiving burden and types of perceived social support influence psychological well-being.

Methods

A cross-sectional study was conducted among 387 family caregivers of older adults in the Marche region (Italy) between November 2019 and March 2020. Data were collected via a structured questionnaire assessing psychological well-being (WHO-5 Well-Being Index), caregiving burden, and social support (COPE Index). Statistical analyses were performed using Jamovi software, with a significance threshold set at p < 0.05.

Results

A significant negative correlation was found between caregiving burden and psychological well-being [r (364) = - 0.540, p < 0.001], with caregiving burden being a significant predictor of psychological well-being reduction (R 2 = 0.290; F = 150, p < 0.001). A threshold value of 2 (on a 1-4 scale) was identified, where caregiving burden predicted a significant reduction in psychological well-being. Conversely, greater perceived social support was positively correlated with better psychological well-being [r (357) = 0.348, p < 0.001] and was a significant predictor of it [R 2 = 0.121; F = 49.2, p < 0.001]. Support from social and health services had the most notable impact on psychological well-being. Moreover, social support mitigated the negative impact of caregiving burden on psychological well-being.

Conclusion

The study confirms that high caregiving burden adversely affects caregivers' psychological well-being, while social support plays a protective role. These findings highlight the need for interventions focused on reducing caregiving burden and enhancing support systems for family caregivers.

Collegiate Athletes' Cognitive Beliefs Related to Setback Anxiety and Rumination in Sport

Setbacks are common occurrences in sport. Recently, setbacks such as injuries and deselection have been accompanied, and confounded, by setbacks related to COVID-19. How students manage a setback may depend on the interaction of two control beliefs: primary control (PC) to directly influence the setback and secondary control (SC) to adjust to it. Purpose: This study investigates the relationships between athletes' PC and SC and two important sport setback-related outcomes-anxiety and rumination. Method: We employed a cross-sectional design examining collegiate athletes in the USA and Canada (N = 200; Mage = 20.9 years, 143 women, 52 men, 3 non-binary, 2 did not disclose). Using regression tests controlling for setback severity, we examined the interaction effects of athletes' PC and SC beliefs relative to setbacks, on the anxiety and rumination variables. Results: We found SC beliefs were beneficial to setback-related anxiety and rumination. A significant interaction indicated that particularly when PC was low, SC had negative associations with setback-related anxieties about letting others down (β = -.45, p < .001) and experiencing pain (β = -.37, p < .001). Conclusion: The findings suggest SC beliefs are important for managing setbacks-specifically for attenuating harmful rumination, and specific setback anxieties. We discuss the possibility of enhancing SC beliefs for combatting sport setbacks through control-enhancing interventions as a direction for future research.

Older adults' adaptations to life events: a mobility perspective

Mobility research tends to focus on physical movement and experiences in later life; however, changes in older adult mobility over time remains underexplored. Furthermore, older adults typically experience many life events, some of which result from cognitive and physical decline, and many of which impact mobility. This article aims to explore how life events affect the mobility of older adults over time. We conducted in-depth interviews with 22 older adults aged 55 years and over from Lancashire, United Kingdom. Of these participants, eight lived with memory problems. The findings show that both anticipated and unexpected life events play a profound role in the participants' mobility over time. Retirement, long-term illness and age-related illness were examples of anticipated life events, while the death of a loved one and developing memory problems were examples of unexpected life events. In both cases, participants' made external adaptations, such as moving home, or internal adaptations, such as self-awareness. The findings also emphasise the layered nature of life events and adaptations playing a role in the participants' mobility. Additionally, life events such as developing memory problems showed a domino effect, triggering further life events and adaptations which impacted the participants' mobility. This article emphasises how transition periods can occur before or after a life event, showing that adaptations can be pre-emptive to a life event. Our article contributes to calls for internal adaptations to be fully incorporated into age-related policy and also for age-related policy to be more inclusive for older adults who experience memory problems and dementia.

Positive Cognitive Reappraisal in Stress Resilience, Mental Health, and Well-Being: A Comprehensive Systematic Review

Stress-related psychopathology is on the rise, and there is a pressing need for improved prevention strategies. Positive appraisal style, the tendency to appraise potentially threatening situations in a positive way, has been proposed to act as a key resilience mechanism and therefore offers a potential target for preventive approaches. In this article, we review n  =  99 studies investigating associations of positive cognitive reappraisal, an important sub-facet of positive appraisal style, with outcome-based resilience and relevant other outcomes, which are considered resilience-related. According to the studies reviewed, positive cognitive reappraisal moderates the relation between stressors and negative outcomes and is positively related to several resilience-related outcomes. It also mediates between other resilience factors and resilience, suggesting it is a proximal resilience factor.

Self-Regulation, Marital Climate, and Emotional Well-Being among Japanese Older Couples

Although the association of self-regulation and well-being are well researched, few studies have addressed the dynamic mechanism of this relationship within married couples. This study examined the relationships of self-regulation and marital climate with the emotional well-being of both actors and partners among older Japanese couples. Through a mail survey, 498 older couples with husbands (aged in their 70s) and their wives (aged 60 or over) responded to a questionnaire comprising measures of selective optimization with compensation (SOC), tenacious goal pursuit and flexible goal adjustment, marital climate, and emotional well-being. The results of hierarchical linear modeling showed that positive interpretation was associated with not only their own lower depressive symptomatology and higher life satisfaction but also those of their partners. Furthermore, tenacious goal pursuit was beneficially associated with older adults' life satisfaction. Marital climate was positively related to emotional well-being and the association was larger among wives than among husbands. However, contrary to expectations, use of an optimization strategy was negatively linked to partners' life satisfaction, but not actors'. Besides confirming the apparent benefits of self-regulation for actors' well-being, self-regulation could be beneficially or detrimentally related to partners' well-being. To be happy in old age, it seems more important for individuals to care for their spouses and create a favorable marital climate than to pursue their own goals exclusively. There remains, however, a need to simultaneously examine the associations of both intrapersonal (self) and interpersonal (collective) regulatory processes with well-being.