Preditores de saúde mental em cuidadores informais portugueses : o papel das estratégias de coping e da orientação positiva para a vida

Abstract

Introduction: The role of the informal caregiver and shown to be more relevant in the current sociodemographic context. The number of informal caregivers has increased in the last decades and Portugal is estimated to have about a million and three hundred thousand informal caregivers. The coping strategies frequently used to deal with stressful situations, as well as dispositional variables such as positive life orientation, are of huge relevance to the comprehension of this individuals mental health in different contexts. Goal: Analyze the connection between coping strategies and positive life orientation and mental health in a group of Portuguese informal caregivers. Methods: This study is based on a quantitative and transversal methodology. In the study we´re involved 133 informal caregivers living in Portugal. The average age was 52 years (DP = 16,60), 76,7% identified with the female gender and had on average started to provide care about 6 and a half years ago. Results: We could identify a significative association between the use of specific coping strategies, positive life orientation and distress and welfare variables. Simultaneously we identified that positivity and instrumental support revealed themselves as significative welfare predictors. Duration of care, positivity, self-blame and positive reevaluation we´re pinned as depression predictors. Religion, self-blame and seeking of emotional support are also associated as anxiety predictors. Lastly, positivity, self-blame and seeking of emotional support were established as stress predictors. We observed that positive life orientation is the predictor that best explains welfare levels, and on other hand the use of some specific coping strategies is best to predict stress variables. Conclusion: The coping strategies used and the levels of positivity proved to be essential for understanding mental health in this group of informal caregivers. This specific knowledge will contribute to the planning of more informed interventions adapted to the unique needs of this population. Keywords: Informal caregivers; Coping Strategies; Positive orientation towards life and mental health

Date of Award	2023
Original language	Portuguese
Supervisor	Maria Teresa Soares Souto (Supervisor) & Maria José Pereira Ferreira (Supervisor)