The impact of family environment and decision-making satisfaction on caregiver depression: a path analytic model

OBJECTIVES. This research examines caregiver depression in the context of traditional care-related primary stressors, such as the caregiving context and care-recipient impairment, and secondary stressors, such as family environment and decision-making satisfaction. METHODS. The authors examine a causal (path) model of depression among 244 caregivers. Ordinary least squares regression results are used to determine the direct and indirect effects of stressors on caregiver depression. RESULTS. The path coefficients obtained show that adaptability and conflict have the most powerful net effects. With the caregiving context variables, they explain approximately 30% of the variance in decision-making satisfaction. Family adaptability and decision-making satisfaction also have significant paths. The caregiving context, network, family environment, and decision-making variables explain approximately 25% of the variance in caregiver depression. DISCUSSION. These findings suggest that practitioners working with caregivers to ameliorate depression need to examine the broader aspects of family environment and caregiver perceptions related to decision making.