Predictors of Family Caregiver Burden in Shanghai.

Abstract

This study explored predictors of family caregiver burden against the backdrop of the rapidly aging population and gradually weakening family care in urban China. It used a unique sample from the 2017 survey on older adults with functional disability and their family caregivers in Shanghai, China. A multi-pronged approach and ordinary least squares (OLS) regression were employed to identify predictors of family caregiver burden. Statistical analysis revealed that approximately 25% of caregivers felt stressed. Many independent variables related to caregivers, care recipients, their relationship, and social support had statistically significant impacts on caregiver burden. This study also found that caregiver educational level, caregiver family economic status, and the number of other caregivers had significant moderating effects on the correlation between older people's ability to perform activities of daily living (ADL) and family caregiver burden. Policy implications derived from those findings were also discussed.