Effects of Positive Thinking on Dementia Caregivers’ Burden and Care-Recipients’ Behavioral Problems

Most dementia care is provided at home by family members. This caregiving places an additional burden on the family members, which can negatively impact their physical and psychological well-being. The caregivers’ burden can also contribute to behavioral problems in the care-recipients. The purpose of this study was to examine the mediating/moderating effects of positive thinking (PT) on the relationship between caregivers’ burden (embarrassment/anger, patient’s dependency, and self-criticism) and their care-recipients’ behavioral problems (memory, depression, and disruption) in a sample of 100 dementia caregivers. Results indicated that caregivers’ embarrassment, self-criticism, and perception of patient dependency predicts depression in care-recipients, and these relationships are moderated by PT. Results also indicated that as PT increases, the relationship between embarrassment and disruption goes down as well as does the relationship between self-criticism and depression. The study provided direction for the development of a PT training intervention to help caregivers to combat their burden.