@article{ref1,
title="Depression in partner caregivers of people with neurological conditions; associations with self-compassion and quality of life",
journal="Journal of mental health",
year="2019",
author="Hlabangana, Vuyolwethu and Hearn, Jasmine Heath",
volume="ePub",
number="ePub",
pages="1-6",
abstract="<b>Objectives:</b> Informal caregivers are vulnerable to poor mental health and quality of life (QoL). Self-compassion may protect against this. This study investigated depression and QoL in partner caregivers of people with a long-term or neurological condition (e.g. dementia or spinal cord injury) and explored the extent to which QoL and self-compassion are predictive of depression. <b>Design:</b> A cross-sectional, questionnaire design. <b>Methods:</b> Participants were recruited from charities and support groups. Partner caregivers (<i>N</i> = 57) completed assessments of depression, QoL, and self-compassion. <b>Results:</b> Over half (61.8%) of caregivers experienced at least mild symptoms of depression, illustrating high prevalence among caregivers compared with the general population. Overall QoL was poor compared with non-caregivers. QoL was poorest in the physical domain (<i>M</i> = 51.9, SD = 10.1) and highest in the environmental domain (<i>M</i> = 64.9, SD = 15.8). Both self-compassion and QoL were significant predictors of depression (<i>p</i> < 0.05), explaining 48.8% of the variance. Hours spent providing care was also significantly predictive of depression (<i>p</i> < 0.05). <b>Conclusion:</b> Self-compassion and QoL may be important targets for supportive interventions for this population. This study underscores the importance of developing supportive interventions for informal partner caregivers, and developing self-compassion in these.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="0963-8237",
doi="10.1080/09638237.2019.1630724",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09638237.2019.1630724"
}