Introduction and Psychometric Validation of the Resilience and Strain Questionnaire (ResQ-Care)— A Scale on the Ratio of Informal Caregivers' Resilience and Stress Factors

Abstract

Background: Informal caregivers are a particularly vulnerable population at risk for adverse health outcomes. Likewise, there are many scales available assessing individual caregiver burden and stress. Recently, resilience in caregivers gained increasing interest and scales started to assess resilience factors as well. Drawing on a homeostatic model, we developed a scale assessing both caregivers' stress and resilience factors. We propose four scales, two covering stress and two covering resilience factors, in addition to a sociodemographic basic scale. Based on the stress:resilience ratio, the individual risk of adverse health outcomes and suggestions for interventions can be derived.Methods: A total of 291 informal caregivers filled in the ResQ-Care as part of a survey study conducted during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in Germany. Exploratory factor analysis was performed. Validity analyses were examined by correlations with the Brief Resilience Scale (BRS), the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-4) and the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15).Results: The data fitted our proposed four-factor solution well, explaining 43.3% of the variance. Reliability of each scale was at least acceptable with Cronbach's α ≥0.67 and MacDonald's ω ≥0.68 for all scales. The two strain scales weighed more than the resilience scales and explained 65.6% of the variance. Convergent and discriminant validity was confirmed for the BRS and PSS-4, whereas the GDS-15 correlation pattern was counterintuitive.Conclusion: The factor structure of the ResQ-Care scale was confirmed, with good indications of reliability and validity. Inconsistent correlations of the scales with the GDS-15 might be due to a reduced validity of GDS-15 assessment during the COVID-19 lockdown.

Assessment of the Validity of the Resilience and Strain Questionnaire in Caregivers of People with Dementia (ResQ-Care-Dem)

“…Resilience and Strain Questionnaire for Dementia Caregivers (ResQ-Care-Dem) (11,12) The ResQ-Care-Dem questionnaire comprises four scales, two resilience and two burden scales, each consisting of ve items. In addition, there is a basic scale with sociodemographic questions, which was not utilized in this questionnaire as sociodemographic information had already been collected in the survey.…”

“…The development of the Resilience and Strain Questionnaire in Caregivers (ResQ-Care) was based on a literature review of predictors of stress and caregiver burden, as well as caregiver resilience (11,12). There is a general version for informal caregivers (ResQ-Care) and a questionnaire version for informal caregivers of people with dementia, the Resilience and Strain Questionnaire for Dementia Caregivers (ResQ-Care-Dem).…”

“…An initial validation study of the general version of the questionnaire provided information on the reliability and construct validity of the questionnaire (11). Internal consistency as a measure of reliability of the scales were within the moderate range.…”

“…Existing caregiver questionnaires often assess caregiver burden only indirectly, namely by principally assessing the situation of the person with dementia and thus not focusing on the caregiver per se. Wuttke-Linnemann et al (11) aimed to develop a concise questionnaire with the twofold aim to a) identify particularly vulnerable caregivers as early as possible and b) to derive speci c recommendations for action (11,12).…”

The Influence of Resilience on Caregiver Burden, Depression, and Stress in the Course of the COVID-19 Lockdowns

“…The survey was specifically developed for the purpose of the present study based on validated questionnaires and empirical evidence on caregiver burden and caregiver coping (Adelman et al, 2014; Jones et al, 2019; Palacio G et al, 2019; Wu et al, 2021; Wuttke-Linnemann et al, 2021). It includes questions about the demographic characteristics of the caregiver and the person in need of care, the care situation (caring with professional support [yes/no], average hours of caring per week [<20/20–40/>40], living in the same household [yes/no]) both before and during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as coping-related resilient behaviors (fixed daily structure, positive activities, exercise, social contacts, utilization of help).…”