Date of Award

Spring 8-1-2003

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

Sociology

First Advisor

Georgeanna M. Tryban

Second Advisor

Thomas L. Steiger

Third Advisor

Barbara E. Zajac

Abstract

This study examines whether the caregiver's self-rated health status is affected by the caregiver's demographic characteristics (age, education level, and income), caregiver's stressor (the number of ADL and IADL), mediating variables of the caregiver's appraisal (willingness to help non-family members, level satisfaction with life, and financial burden), of and mediating variable of social support (information and/or advice from other family members or friends). Data were drawn from Chronic Illness and Caregiving, a national telephone survey conducted by Harris Interactive Inc. on behalf of The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Johns Hopkins University, and Partnership for Solutions. The sample size of caregivers for regression analysis was 285. Using simultaneous multiple regression, this study tests a stress and coping model developed by Haley, Levine, Brown, and Batolucci ( 1987) . It emphasizes caregiver appraisals of stress, coping responses, and social support and activity. In addition, the present study seeks to explain the role of social support in the explanation of iv the caregiver's health status applying Coleman's (1988) "social capitaln theory. Pearson correlation coefficients indicate that (1) elderly caregivers tend to receive more social support than younger caregivers, (2) caregivers with higher education tend to have greater income, (3) caregivers with higher income are more likely to have greater satisfaction level. And ( 4) caregivers with greater financial burden tend to seek or receive greater amount of information and advice support from family members and friends. Using simultaneous multiple regression, the model of stress and coping is tested, and the results suggest that stressors do not affect the health status of caregivers directly. In general, the results are in accordance with Haley et al.' s (1987) stress and coping model. But the statistical results that provide empirical support for Coleman's "social capitaln theory have not been found.

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