Assessing informal caregivers' experiences : a qualitative and psychometric evaluation of the Caregiver Reaction Assessment Scale.

• With the aim to evaluate the Swedish version of the Caregiver Reaction Assessment Scale (CRA), informal caregivers (n = 209) to individuals with a malignant disease, dementia or a physical impairment were recruited. The CRA was developed in the USA and is a self‐rating questionnaire consisting of five subscales, measuring family members' reactions to the experience of caring for a relative with mental or physical illnesses. Data were analysed using psychometric and qualitative methods. Findings indicated good internal consistency, and a factor analysis confirmed the structure with five subscales; however, an overlap of items between the subscales was found. A content analysis of respondents' comments indicated that there were problems due to presuppositions inherent in the questions and with the meaning of words. Problems regarding inclusion/exclusion aspects in some concepts were also found. Two aspects of caregiver reactions were found to be missing or only partly covered: worrying and positive experiences. Results from this study suggest that the Swedish version is useful for assessment of caregiver reactions but needs further refinement.

Subject headings

MEDICIN OCH HÄLSOVETENSKAP  -- Hälsovetenskap -- Omvårdnad (hsv//swe)

MEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES  -- Health Sciences -- Nursing (hsv//eng)

Keyword

Adaptation; Psychological

Adult

Aged

Aged; 80 and over

Caregivers/*psychology

Dementia/nursing

Family/*psychology

Female

Health Status

Home Nursing/*psychology

Humans

Male

Middle Aged

Neoplasms/nursing

Personal Satisfaction

Psychometrics

Quality of Life/*psychology

Questionnaires/standards

Reproducibility of Results

Social Support

Sweden

Omvårdnad

Nursing

Publication and Content Type

ref (subject category)

art (subject category)