Expressed emotion in caregivers of the dementing elderly

Abstract

This paper presents findings on the association between 'expressed emotion' (EE) and a number of factors previously investigated in relationship to caregivers of the dementing elderly. Frequency of critical comments (expressed emotion) was correlated with a number of supporter and dependent characteristics, variables within the relationship between caregivers and their dementing relatives, and help from professionals. The analysis revealed significant correlations between EE and sex of caregiver, caregivers' psychological well-being, contact with friends and the quality of the relationship between the caregiver and dementing relative. The dementing relatives' level of impairment, age and sex were not significantly correlated with EE, nor was help from the services. Also, those most critical of their dementing relatives were not more likely to express a preference for institutional care.

Expressed Emotion in relatives of persons with dementia: a systematic review and meta-analysis

“…Table 2 provides an overview of the quality ratings of published articles. Five studies recruited participants from clinical settings, but with little or no report of the selection procedure, therefore the studies were rated as 'moderate', in the selection bias domain of the appraisal tool (Fearon, Donaldson, Burns, & Tarrier, 1998;Gilhooly & Whittick, 1989;Vitaliano et al, 1988;Vitaliano et al, 1993;Wagner et al, 1997). The remaining studies were rated as 'strong' as they recruited participants from a variety of clinical settings and reported on the selection procedure and/or the number of eligible dyads who agreed to participate.…”

“…Seven studies were rated as 'strong' on the blinding domain as the ratings of EE were carried out blind to the outcome measures of the care recipient and their spouse (Bledin et al, 1990;Fearon et al, 1998;Nomura et al, 2005;Tarrier et al, 2002;Vitaliano et al, 1988;Vitaliano et al, 1993;Wagner et al, 1997). The remaining five studies were rated as 'moderate' as they did not report on blinding (Cooney, Howard, & Lawlor, 2006;Gilhooly & Whittick, 1989;Li & Lewis, 2013;Orford, O'Reilly, & Goonatilleke, 1987;Spruytte, Van Audenhove, Lammertyn, & Storms, 2002). Six studies used the CFI to measure relatives' EE (Bledin et al, 1990;Fearon et al, 1998;Gilhooly & Whittick, 1989;Nomura et al, 2005;Orford et al, 1987;Tarrier et al, 2002) and as this is a valid and reliable measure they were rated as 'strong' on the data collection methods domain.…”

Expressed emotion and depression in caregivers of older adults with dementia: results from Taiwan

“…A number of studies have also found that EE in caregivers of dementia patients was related to caregivers' strain and distress (Bledin, MacCarthy, Kuipers, & Woods, 1990), burden (Nomura et al, 2005;Vitaliano, Russo, Young, Teri, & Maiuro, 1991), and psychological well-being (Gilhooly & Whittick, 1989). Despite the importance of EE, few studies have focused on EE and depression in caregivers of dementia patients (Tarrier et al, 2002;Vitaliano, Young, Russo, Romano, & Magana-Amato, 1993).…”

Le fardeau du soignant dans la démence: déterminants et stratégies d'intervention

“…Dans ce cas, le climat émotionnel ou le dysfonctionnement du comportement de l'aidant est caractérisé par des comportements tels qu'un surinvestissement important, des attitudes critiques et une attitude hostile définissant le concept d'«expressed emotion» [26]. Dans la démence, les études utilisant ce même type de catégorisation des comportements de l'aidant, montrent que ces attitudes sont corrélées avec le niveau d'épuisement [8,[27][28][29] et qu'elles peuvent être prédictives d'un taux élevé de troubles du comportement chez le patient dément [8].…”