Does Type of Disease Matter? Gender Differences Among Alzheimer's and Parkinson's Disease Spouse Caregivers

Abstract

Loss of reciprocity in marital relationships may affect women more negatively than men. Future studies that address underlying mechanisms of gender differences and focus on similar caregiving situations and contexts deserve attention.

The Impact of Caregiving on the Development of Major Depressive Disorder and Generalized Anxiety Disorder

“…Similar to Carter et al (2008), this study indicated that being older, married, a man, employed irrespective of caregiving task decreased the likelihood of suffering from a depressive disorder. In accordance with previous research, females had an increased risk of suffering from a depressive disorder in comparison to men (Greenberg et al, 1993;Hooker et al, 2000;Schulz et al, 2009). Previous research has shown that women are nearly twice as likely to suffer from depression as men (Schulz et al, 2009).…”

“…For example, women are more likely to have to contend with balancing work and looking after children which could increase stress levels and make them more vulnerable to developing depression (Pruchno et al, 1990;Schulz et al, 2009). Women may be more likely to report symptoms of depression where men due to stigma may underreport symptoms or not recognise symptoms of depression (Hooker et al, 2000). Therefore, the gender differences found in this study could be influenced by increased stressors and the reporting of symptoms.…”

“…One possible reason for these increased rates is the precarious nature of a psychological illness. As Hooker, Manoogian-O'Dell, Monahan, Frazier, and Shifren (2000) postulated, the course of a mental illness is very cyclical and volatile which leaves the family cargiver with a lower sense of mastery over the relatives' behaviour and symptoms. Other contributing factors that may have contributed to these findings are the disruption within the family and social relationships as well as the stigma accompanying a mental illness.…”

Modelo De Adaptação Em Um Ensaio Clínico Controlado Com Cuidadores Familiares De Pessoas Com Doenças Crônicas

“…[5][6] In addition, when women are solely responsible for caring, they may experience feelings of guilt over not caring enough. 7 In one study, the authors reported that female caregivers and young adults in general reported having had more negative experiences related to care than male caregivers and spouses, respectively. 8 Caring wives were the least likely to report positive experiences deriving from care.…”

“…26 Supporting these findings, other authors found that caregivers who took care of children while taking care of relatives with cancer were particularly prone to experience psychological distress and greater difficulty in finding meaning in the role of caregiver for a person with cancer. 7 The environmental stimuli of the family caregiver are processed by the regulatory and cognitive subsystems that act in the adaptive modes. It is emphasized that the regulatory subsystem is particularly relevant in family caregivers, as the continuous exposure to stimuli that require adaptation may activate mechanisms that involve the deregulation of the neuroendocrine-immunological axis, including the autonomic nervous system and the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, leading to the deregulation or deterioration of organic functions.…”